


Embracing the Dark

by rubberduckz84



Category: Wicked Lovely Series - Melissa Marr
Genre: Angst, Drama, F/M, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-30
Updated: 2020-04-01
Packaged: 2021-02-28 21:01:03
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 17
Words: 57,816
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23393692
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rubberduckz84/pseuds/rubberduckz84
Summary: Maeve Byrne has always known she wasn't completely human. But it's a secret she's held her entire life - not even telling her cousin Aislinn. Now, years after leaving and thinking she had put it behind her, she's returned to Huntsdale to face her past and possibly find out once and for all who her father is.
Relationships: Niall/Original Character
Comments: 4
Kudos: 7





	1. Going Home

Maeve stood at the large windows in her living room staring down at the street in front of the old building where she now lived. It was bigger than her old place in the larger city where she had spent the last several years, though she chalked that up to the continuing decline of Huntsdale. Even though she now lived in an area that was undergoing so-called gentrification, she could still see the vestiges of its previous life in certain corners and alleys.

Much like everywhere she looked, she saw the shadows of her old life lingering in her periphery. She wasn’t that far off from the small one-bedroom apartment that she had grown up in with her mother.

Shoving those thoughts aside - Maeve really didn’t want to think about her mother right now - she mentally went over how much money she had left in her account and when she would receive her first paycheck. She should be okay, though she sorely missed the savings she had carefully built up over years and then completely decimated in just several months.

Maeve still couldn’t bring herself to touch the money that Christopher, her former fiance, had left her, too guilty to use it, though she might have to eventually. Her new job as an instructor at one of the higher end dance studios in town was a step down in terms of the salary she had been used to once upon a time as a professional dancer, though it did manage to cover her rent and most of her necessities. And then there was the issue of paying for her mother’s latest stint in an inpatient treatment program. 

Sighing, Maeve realized she was going to have to once again get multiple jobs if she was going to take care of herself and her mother. She didn’t want to use Christopher’s money for that. Well, her money, she supposed.

A shudder went through her lithe frame as she closed her eyes for a moment and his face appeared in her mind, smiling down at her. She could almost feel his arms around her, lifting her up into the air. It was a phantom pain - she knew this. Just like those who had lost an arm or a leg and still felt them, she could feel his presence around her though he had been gone two years now.

Maeve’s eyes flew open as she quickly wiped away the few tears that had leaked out though there was no one around to see. She had been back in Huntsdale - a place that she had sworn to leave in her rearview mirror - just a week, but still had yet to actually speak with anyone other than her boss at the studio and the movers who brought in all her things. At some point she would reach out to her cousin Aislinn and perhaps her old friends. But not yet. 

No, for the moment, she was more intrigued by the other changes that had taken over Huntsdale since she left. Namely the scores of faeries she had seen as soon as she entered the city limits. She wasn’t sure if there truly were more or if it was just a side effect of there not being many where she had lived. The large number of steel buildings and skyscrapers likely kept most of them away. 

Maeve had always seen them. Her mother made her swear never to tell anyone or to let them know that she saw them. And she was never to tell anyone who she was or what her father was. Not that anyone would believe her. No, Maeve figured if she told someone that her father was a faery they’d probably lock her up with her mother.

Gripping the small charm necklace that her so-called father had left her as a baby - that she had been ordered to never take off when around others - Maeve frowned as she saw a group of girls dance down the sidewalk, vines twisting around their bodies. She then looked over and saw more - these darker and more sinister, though for some reason she wasn’t afraid. No, the dark faeries didn’t scare her. If anyone understood pain and darkness, she figured it would be her. 

Sighing, she turned away from the window and looked around the large, open room that comprised her living room, dining area, and kitchen. Her eyes traveled up to the loft-like balcony where her bedroom, closet and bathroom were located. With no work that week, she had thrown herself into unpacking and decorating, finishing it up in record time. Though pain pricked her heart as she looked over to the large black and white photos on the wall. Some might find her crazy for putting them up, for surrounding herself with memories of the life that was no longer hers. The one that had brought her joy and purpose and taken her away from the nightmare that had been her previous life. But she found it soothing in a way, even though it brought with it just as much pain as happiness.

She walked across the room to the kitchen, contemplating what to make for dinner. She had nowhere to be for a few more days so thought about enjoying a night in with a movie, food and a bottle (or two) of wine. As she had done the past few nights. But the fridge was empty. Frowning, she shut the door, swearing she had just been to the store.

Must have been longer, further proving that all her days were blurring together as they had for the last two years. At least nowadays she was without the constant visits to the hospital or physical rehabilitation clinic. And the physical pain only came now and again rather than constantly following her.

She walked to the small stand next to the front door where she kept a collection of scarves and pulled one off, carefully wrapping it around her neck before reaching for her purse, cloth shopping bag and keys. Thankfully autumn was finally starting to come, making the mornings and nights a bit chillier and her choice to constantly wear scarves, high collars and long sleeves less strange. But Maeve preferred the discomfort of being too warm to the stares that she got otherwise. That she still hadn’t learned to live with over the last two years.

Taking a moment to stare in the mirror as she situated her long, dark hair around her shoulders, further covering what small parts of skin that might be exposed, she then walked out, locking the door behind her and headed out of the building. 

She was careful not to actually look at any of the faeries that she passed on the sidewalk. At 23, she had a lot of experience in ignoring them, though sometimes she wished that she couldn’t see them - that she wasn’t what she was. Her mother couldn’t see them, though Maeve knew that her cousin Aislinn along with her grandmother did. When she was younger, it was hard not to talk about it with them. Especially during the periods when she had lived with them sporadically. But it was a secret that her mother insisted she keep to fanatical degree. 

Seeing the frolicking faeries around her, Maeve wondered just why it would have been so bad to tell her cousin. It would have been nice to have someone else to talk about it with and she figured Ash and Aunt Elena were far better than her mother had been.

Her mother had vacillated between crazed rants and completely shutting down with a few lucid days or weeks scattered here and there. The more Maeve thought about it, the more she wondered why anyone - the state included - had ever thought Marianne Byrne was capable of taking care of a child. She should have been put in foster care or sent to live full time with her Aunt Elena from the start.

Maeve supposed it didn’t matter now. She had dropped her mother off at yet another inpatient program, buying her at least a few months of respite until she had to figure out what to do with her next. She hadn’t even told her mother that she moved back to Huntsdale yet, not wanting her to break out and unexpectedly show up on her doorstep one day. Maeve had long grown weary of constantly looking after the woman who was supposed to have cared for her.

_ You’ve been looking out for her for years, Maeve. You don’t need to do this anymore. At some point you have to let her go on her own. She won’t get better as long as she knows she has you to fall back on… _

_ But she’s my mom. I can’t just… toss her out on the street like garbage… _

Once again, the tears pricked at her eyes as Christopher’s voice floated through her mind. It was a conversation they had had many times. She wondered what he would say about her moving back here. Probably would have tried to talk her out of it. Tell her that the world was a large place and there were many other - better - places she could go to start over. But for some reason, Huntsdale had called to her. Like it or not, it was home. 

“Maeve?”

She stopped on the sidewalk and turned around, her eyes widening as she saw Seth Morgan standing there, a surprised smile appearing on his face. She hadn’t realized that she walked by him, though one look at him told her everything she needed to know. 

A lot certainly had changed while she was gone. During that time he had somehow become one of _ them _ .

_ One of us,  _ she mentally corrected herself. Though she had never really thought of herself as part of the faery world. 

“Seth,” she said, walking back towards him as her heart raced slightly. She wasn’t sure why. He had been a good friend back in the day and they had kept in touch until she had cut off contact with most people after the accident. There was no reason to be afraid of him now that he was apparently a faery, she told herself. Though just as soon as her heart had started racing, a sense of calm came over her. 

It was odd. Especially as it seemed to be accompanying a brown-haired faery with a cautious look on his face - and a long scar down his cheek - that was crossing the street towards them. She kept her eyes and focus on Seth though, telling that the other one hadn’t made himself visible to humans. 

Though it was hard with the two shadow figures constantly moving around him. One stopped for a moment, seeming to be curious about her as it moved closer.

“I didn’t know you were visiting,” he said, pulling her in for a hug. 

“Moved back, actually. And I haven’t really told anyone just yet,” she said as she stepped back from him. “Though should probably go visit Aunt Elena and Ash at some point… How you been?”

“Good,” Seth said, exuding a sense of calm that she was happy to see. While she had always liked him, he had been a bit wild back in the day. It was good to see him settled. “God, it’s been… years. You look great.” 

Maeve subconsciously reached for the scarf, making sure that it was still in place though she mentally chided herself. This was Seth. He would never say anything to make her feel uncomfortable. Still, she didn’t let anyone outside of her doctors see her scars if she could help it.

“Thanks,” she said, still keeping her smile in place though she looked to the ground for a moment, seeing the other faery’s feet now. This one was different. She could tell that he wasn’t just your ordinary, run-of-the-mill faery. Beside his shadowy companions, there was a power that seemed to emanate from him that she had yet to feel with any others she had encountered over the years.

Seth seemed to have made friends in high places.

“You look really good too. Finally grew up, I see,” she said, looking back up at Seth.

“Yea… lot’s changed,” he said, though she sensed something in his eyes. Perhaps not all the changes were good. “Since you’re back, you should come by the Crow’s Nest. See everyone.” 

Maeve’s eyes widened slightly as she thought about the possibility of seeing all her old friends. She wasn’t sure that was something she wanted to do. While she had a bit of a wild streak to her in high school, she wasn’t nearly as daring anymore. It didn’t help that she felt as though she had failed. She was supposed to be the one that got out of Huntsdale. Went on to do great things, be a world-famous dancer. She hadn’t made it and now she was back here with the rest of them.

“I… maybe,” she said a bit reluctantly. Sensing her hesitance, Seth just smiled and nodded.

“We’re there just about every night. Feel free to stop by whenever,” he replied easily. She smiled gratefully at him and nodded. “Though let me give you my number just in case.” Maeve reached into her purse and pulled out her phone, handing it over. He quickly typed in his number and saved it, then handed the phone back. “Really, it’s good to see you, Maeve. Don’t be a stranger now that you’re back.”

“I won’t,” she replied as she started backing from him and the other fairy. She offered a small wave and then turned, continuing on her way and resisting the urge to look back over her shoulder.

For some inexplicable reason, she found herself wanting to go meet Seth that night. While she told herself it was because she was in dire need of friends and time out of her apartment, and Seth would be a good one to reconnect with, part of her felt it had something to do with the faery that had stood at his side.

~~~

“Who is she?” Niall asked, watching as the woman made her way down the sidewalk, nervously gripping the purse and empty shopping bag on her shoulder. 

“Maeve Byrne. She’s Ash’s cousin. A couple years older than me,” Seth said, also watching her, though he had faded into invisibility. His smile vanished as a look of concern came over his features.

“I was unaware her mother had any siblings,” Niall said, glancing at him.

“She didn’t. Their grandmothers were sisters,” Seth replied. “Though considering they practically grew up together, I’m surprised Ash hasn’t mentioned her.” Niall glanced over at Seth. “Maeve’s mom has always been… high-strung… and an alcoholic, so sometimes Maeve would stay with Ash and her grandmother. Then she got a scholarship to a prestigious dance company on the East Coast. Moved over there in high school and became a professional ballerina. She used to come visit more often, but I haven’t seen her in at least two years...

Niall turned to continue watching the woman. He had sensed a sadness in her eyes, noticed how she was covered up though it was still unseasonably warm. From what Seth said, it sounded as though she had had a bright future. So why was she back living here? 

“She was in a car accident,” Seth said, looking over at Niall and correctly guessing where his thoughts were going. “Couldn’t dance professionally anymore. At least that’s what I heard. Though I thought she had taken up a position teaching at her old company.” Niall nodded slowly, his dark eyes still fixed on Maeve as she turned a corner, nearly colliding with one of Keenan’s fey that stepped out of the way just in time.

He took a step in that direction and then stopped, unsure of why his feet were leading him to follow her, though his shadows ventured a bit further before coming a halt. He then sighed and turned back to Seth.

“Let’s go,” he said, offering his friend a smile. Seth nodded.

“Alright.”

~~~

Maeve wasn’t sure just what had possessed her, but there she was, standing just outside the Crow’s Nest later that night. She had a lot of fun memories from the bar. The nights spent dancing non-stop, occasionally talking someone older into buying her a drink. Getting away from her mother’s constant rollercoaster of emotions at home.

But everything had changed. She wasn’t the person she was back then. And she figured that everyone else had changed as well.

Regardless, there she was. After she had dinner, she found herself upstairs in her closet, changing into a lightweight, black knit sweater that hopefully wouldn’t be too hot and a nicer pair of jeans. A lightweight gray scarf was around her neck and her hair was still down in loose waves - the way she always wore it when out in public. She had even put on a bit of eye shadow, gloss and mascara. It was the most dressed up she had been in over two years.

“This is stupid,” she muttered to herself. 

She wasn’t ready for this. To face more of her past. But there was no going back now. The bouncer had already made eye contact and was watching her, no doubt waiting for her to finally walk up. 

Swallowing whatever fears she had, she squared her shoulders and made her way to him, showing him her ID and then getting a stamp. There must not be a band playing as he asked for no cover. 

Stepping into the bar, she was suddenly assaulted by loud music and people already on the dance floor, though it was a Thursday night. Her eyes widened as she realized there were faeries there as well. There had always been some here and there in the past, but for the most part, they seemed to stay away. Now there seemed to be an abundance of them.

“Christ, have they taken over?” she murmured to herself as she looked around, searching for any familiar face. She smiled in relief when Seth stood from a table and waved her over. Sitting next to him was the faery from earlier, this time allowing himself to be visible to the surrounding humans. Though his shadow friends lingered just behind him. 

“Didn’t think you’d come,” Seth said as he hugged her when she reached the table.

“Decided I needed a night out,” she replied lightly. She then looked over at the other man, who was on his feet.

“This is my friend Niall. Niall, this is Maeve,” Seth said. She held her hand out, offering him a friendly smile as her eyes slid over his scar and settled on his dark eyes. Even in the low light of the bar, she could see something in them. For a moment, she forgot herself and where she was as he took her hand, a jolt running through her. 

But just as quickly, she pulled herself together, still smiling as she shook his hand. Fucking hell, he must be powerful. 

“Nice to meet you,” she said.

“You as well,” Niall replied, offering her a smile in return. Maeve couldn’t help but think he was extremely handsome in a dangerous sort of way as she sat and looked around the bar, feeling herself begin to relax. It was a curious feeling, considering how anxious she had been just moments before, but as she took in the few faeries around them that were obviously Dark Court, she figured that must be it.

She had always felt a sort of comfort whenever she happened to cross one or more of them, likely because of the little her mother had told her about her father - namely that he was part of the Dark Court. Being near them made her feel somewhat more connected to him, though she didn’t even know his name. Unconsciously, she reached for the charm just under her sweater, wondering what would happen if she dared to take it off right then. But she didn’t. It was a risk she didn’t want to take just at the moment. 

She then turned back to Seth.

“Still seems to be the same,” she said.

“Yea… a bit,” he replied, his eyes scanning the room. 

“So, what exactly have you been up to the last couple of years?” Maeve asked. She located a server and quickly ordered a beer before turning back to him expectantly. 

“Well… a lot, I guess,” he said.

“Still making the rounds?” Maeve then asked, a small smile on her face. While she had never hooked up with him, she certainly knew his reputation. If it hadn’t been for Christopher, she probably would have eventually. Even with all his piercings - which weren’t Maeve’s sort of thing - Seth had that something that attracted women to him like flies to honey. Seth chuckled, looking slightly embarrassed.

“Eh, not so much anymore,” he said, not meeting her eyes. “Actually… I was in a pretty serious relationship for a while.” Maeve’s eyebrows rose as the server dropped her beer off in front of her and lingered a bit, smiling at Niall. Neither man seemed to notice her so she finally walked off. Out of the corner of her eye, Maeve saw the shadows chase after her a ways before coming back to settle next to Niall.

“Is that so? Wow… who is this woman who got you to settle down? Anyone I know?” Maeve asked. 

“It was… well, it was Ash,” Seth said, looking up at her. Maeve choked slightly on her beer as she sat up in her chair. He had been dating her cousin? Little Ash? Though Maeve supposed she wasn’t so little anymore. If her memory served her correct, Ash was about 19 now.

“My Ash?” she asked. Seth nodded. “Damn, I have missed a lot… Wait, you said was...”

“We broke up. It was… complicated,” Seth replied. Niall snorted next to him, drawing both of their attention.

“Complicated is a bit of an understatement,” he offered, pulling out a cigarette and lighting it. Maeve turned her attention back to Seth.

“What happened?” she asked, suddenly slightly worried about her cousin. Knowing that Ash had the Sight as well and that Seth was now a faery, she could only imagine that had something to do with it.

“You should probably talk to Ash about that,” Seth said, reaching for his beer. “It’s better if she explains.” Maeve nodded slowly, looking down at her own beer. That statement pretty much confirmed to her that it had something to do with faeries. Seth didn’t know she knew about their existence and probably thought it better that she hear it from Ash herself.

“Well… so… how’s everyone else?” she asked, attempting to turn the conversation to a lighter topic. Seth perked up at that and they launched into a conversation about their old friends. Who was still around. Who had gotten married or pregnant. Who had gone off to college. Occasionally Niall would say something, though he spent most of the time studying Maeve. She supposed she should find it odd or disconcerting, but she didn’t. 

For the few hours she sat there talking and drinking, Maeve started to feel lighter. The feeling that she had made the right decision by coming back to Huntsdale growing. She even grew comfortable with Niall’s shadows. They had grown bolder throughout the night, settling near or around her. She had found it oddly comforting.

_ Maybe… this wasn’t such a bad idea,  _ she thought to herself.

But the night finally came to an end, with Seth calling her a cab.

“Not safe to be walking around by yourself,” he said as they stood outside waiting on it. 

“Eh… Huntsdale doesn’t scare me,” Maeve said lightly, looking around. “Not after living in a big city.” A brief flash of pain came over her face, though she quickly shook her head and brushed it aside. She then turned to Niall and Seth, smiling. “We should do this more often.”

“Now that you’re back, I don’t see why not,” Seth replied, returning the smile, though he glanced at Niall. Maeve nodded, seeing her cab pull up. “Get home safe.” 

“I will,” she called out as she walked over. She waved and then got in, leaning back in the backseat as it drove off. She couldn’t help herself as she looked out of the window, seeing Seth and Niall both watching her. A small smile came over her face.

Yes, maybe this wasn’t a bad idea at all. 


	2. To Be Safe

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Maeve learns a bit more than she expected when visiting family.

Niall stood just outside the large factory-turned-apartment building seeing the lights still on in one third floor apartment. The windows were large and uncovered, but he still couldn’t see into it from this angle. He wasn’t exactly sure why he was there. This was the Summer Queen’s cousin, which would place her firmly off limits once Aislinn found out that she was back in town. Probably put her under their protection immediately, though Keenan would end up caring less. 

There was an uneasy peace among the courts for the time being, but who knew how long that would last.

“Was wondering where you got off to,” Irial said lightly. Niall turned, watching as he sauntered up to him with his usual smirk. While it had been awhile since he had shown up, Niall wasn’t completely surprised to see him. His shadows danced happily around Irial, making it clear how they felt about his presence.

“Just wanted to get some air,” Niall said, looking back to the windows. Irial followed his view and then looked back at his successor, a grin appearing.

“What’s this? Found another one so soon?” he asked. Niall frowned. 

“No,” he said quickly. “Just… checking in on her… she’s… intriguing.” Irial chuckled as he pulled out a cigarette and lighter. 

“How so?” he asked before lighting it. “Pretty? Witty?”

Niall thought for a moment before answering, remembering the small bit of flesh he had seen on her neck. Maeve had tossed her head back in laughter, her dark hair falling away while the scarf had slid down slightly. It was just a glimpse, but he had seen the discolored flesh. As she was in another long-sleeve sweater and he knew that she was in a car accident, he deduced that it must cover most of her body. 

He then thought to her dark blue eyes, the hint of pain and grief that still clung to them though she was smiling.

“Different,” he said finally. Irial’s eyebrows rose as he looked back to the windows.

“Must be interesting if she caught your fancy. Though you do always go for the broken ones,” he mused. 

“Not much room for you to speak,” Niall replied, not looking at him. 

Part of him couldn’t help but think that Maeve wasn’t broken. Despite what he had sensed in her and had heard about her, there was also an underlying strength. That she had survived whatever horrors she had seen and come out on the other side. Not broken, but stronger. 

Though how he sensed any of this in someone he just met was anyone’s guess. Irial sighed and nodded. 

“Suppose that is true,” he said. “What’s her name?”

“Maeve. And she’s the Summer Queen’s cousin,” Niall said. Irial laughed loudly. 

“You have a death wish, my friend,” he said, causing Niall to look over at him. “Mortal and related to the Summer Queen… I highly doubt she will like it if you take up with her cousin after what happened the last time.”

“I have no intentions of doing anything with her cousin. I just… I’m curious to know more about her,” Niall retorted. His shadows moved closer to his side. “And you were the one that did the most harm to Leslie.” Irial stopped laughing, a rare serious look coming over his face.

“I thought we had moved on from that,” he said softly. 

“I thought so as well,” Niall replied, a pensive look on his face as his eyes were once again drawn to the windows. He wanted just one more glimpse of her. Then he would leave. 

Almost as though she sensed his thoughts, Maeve appeared in the window, looking around the street. She had lost the scarf, but was too far for him to make out the scars on her neck. She then turned and walked away again.

Irial looked up, only seeing a bit of her hair as she walked away and then the apartment went dark. 

“Well… shall we take our leave?” Irial asked. Niall nodded and turned, walking away from Irial in the opposite direction. He wasn’t in the mood to spend more time with the former king that night. Though he couldn’t help but glance back at the dark windows one last time.

~~~

Maeve woke up feeling more rested than she had in years the next morning. Perhaps it was being back home or meeting up with Seth and Niall. She wasn’t completely sure, but a newfound strength was running through her as she dressed and had her morning coffee. 

She decided that it was time to drop by and see Aunt Elena and Aislinn. 

Maybe it was fear that she would lose her nerve, but she headed out shortly after, not even bothering to call. She knew her aunt would be there. She was always there. And she would no doubt be happy to see her again. She hoped Aislinn would as well, though she wasn’t completely sure as she had long ago stopped answering her calls and texts. 

Whatever. The past didn’t matter to Maeve anymore. Or at least she told herself that. Now was time to make amends and reforge ties. Spending time with Seth last night had shown her that much. If she could pick up her friendship with him, surely she would be accepted back into the only family she wanted in her life. 

Maeve found herself humming softly as she walked through the city, ignoring the various faeries she came across. For the most part, they left her alone though she got a few curious glances here and there. It didn’t worry her. She had her necklace on, so there was no way they would know anything. To them, she was just another random human walking down the street in a city full of random humans.

She stopped for a moment in front of the building where her aunt and Aislinn lived then walked in, her left leg aching slightly as she went up the stairs. While she did her best to keep up her dancer’s body and form, her injury made it more difficult. But she pushed that aside as she made her way down the hall and stopped in front of her aunt’s door. Making a face at the steel design, she reached up and knocked. 

While it didn’t really affect her that much, she found that she wasn’t too fond of the metal. Granted it had proven hard to avoid in the city.

“Coming!” she heard from within as she stepped back. She glanced around the hall and then whipped her head around as the door flew open. Elena looked very much the same, her gray hair in a braid that wrapped around her head. Her eyes widened in surprise, but then she broke into a large grin.

“Maeve!” she exclaimed as she reached out and pulled her into a strong hug. “My goodness, why didn’t you tell me you were here for a visit?! Where are you staying?”

“I, actually, I moved back,” Maeve said, reveling in the comfort she got from the hug. Elena let go of her and stepped back, staring at her a moment.

“You’ve moved back?” she asked, her eyes questioning. “Well… come on in and you can tell me about it. Just got some tea ready.” 

Maeve followed her into the apartment and looked around, finding it still the same as it was before. She then sat on the sofa as Elena bustled into the kitchen and returned with two mugs of tea. 

“How long have you been back?” Elena asked as she settled into her armchair.

“About a week,” Maeve replied. “I wanted to come by sooner, but I was taking care of my apartment and new job.” Elena nodded. Maeve could sense the worry in her eyes. She was concerned that her mother had something to do with it. “Mom’s in a treatment center the next town over. She… doesn’t know that I’m here.” 

Elena smiled softly and reached over patting her on the knee.

“Probably for the best,” she said soothingly. Maeve nodded and looked down at her mug. “I’m sorry Ash isn’t here. She’s always popping in and out nowadays.” 

“She moved out?” Maeve asked, looking back at her aunt. An odd look came over her face.

“Yes, some time ago. But she still likes to come over and stay the night occasionally,” Elena said, covering her look with a smile. “So, tell me about this job.”

“Oh, just teaching at Frederick’s,” Maeve said easily, wishing that Aislinn were there. 

“I’m not surprised. They are the best studio in town. And you were their shining star,” Elena said. Maeve winced as she thought back to her dancing days.

“Yea, they were happy when I contacted them and said I was looking to move back,” she replied. The concern was back in Elena’s eyes.

“So what brings you back?” she asked softly. Maeve sighed.

“Just… needed to get out of the city. Go somewhere else. Try and start over. I’m not sure why I felt the need to come home, but… couldn’t really think of anywhere else to go,” she said honestly. 

“You know that you’ll always have a place here with us,” Elena said. “You’re family.”

“Thanks,” Maeve said, smiling at her.

“So, have you started classes yet?” Elena asked, steering them towards less touchy subjects.

“No. Start on Monday. They were kind enough to give me some time to settle in,” Maeve replied. “Got a nice place over on Hunt Street.” 

“They’ve been rebuilding that part. Got a lot of nice little shops and cafes,” Elena said.

“Suppose that’s why I chose it,” Maeve said. “And it’s close to the studio. Just a 15-minute walk.” 

“Well… I’m sure Ash will be happy to have you back,” Elena said. “She’s missed you. We both have.” 

“You know… it’s actually good to be back,” Maeve said, finding that she truly believed it. “Though… seems like a lot has changed…”

“That it has,” Elena said with a sigh. “But some things are the same.”

“I can see,” Maeve replied glancing around the apartment. Elena chuckled.

“I’m old. I’m stuck in my ways,” she said.

“Not that old,” Maeve said, scoffing slightly. “You don’t look a day over 30.” Elena laughed loudly.

“Please, we both know that’s not true,” she said, rolling her eyes. 

“Either way, still look good for your age,” Maeve quipped. 

“Maybe. But you definitely take after my sister, god rest her soul,” Elena said.

“Thank goodness for that,” Maeve muttered as her thoughts turned to her mother. Elena was quiet a moment before reaching over for her hand.

“I know she wasn’t the greatest mother, goodness knows I wouldn’t have been able to handle it if I were you, but... there was a time when she wasn’t so bad,” she said softly. “I see her goodness in you. And your grandmother’s. Now she was a strong woman. And kind. I see all of that in you.” 

Maeve smiled and nodded, feeling the tears prick at her eyes. 

“Ah, but wasn’t Gramma also a bit of hellion? I do remember some of the stories you told me,” Maeve said, turning yet again to a lighter subject.

Elena only chuckled as she launched into a story about her sister that Maeve had heard a million times before, but still loved. After about an hour, Maeve was starting to think that Ash wouldn’t come by and was about to suggest she head out when the door opened and shut. She looked over as she heard Aislinn call out for her grandmother.

“I’m in here! And we have a visitor!” Elena shouted. Maeve began to smile as she stood from the sofa. Aislinn came into the room and both of them froze. Though while Aislinn broke into a wide grin and bounded over to hug her, Maeve was reeling from shock.

Thankfully Aislinn had gone through enough physical changes that she could blame it on that. But it was the other changes that had her freeze. Namely the ones that she could see lying just under her glamour.

The light that seemed to shine from just under her skin. The vast field of flowers in her eyes. The heat radiating from her entire body.

Seth wasn’t lying when he said things were complicated. And he wasn’t the only person who had turned faery. Maeve forced herself to smile and hug Aislinn back, though the heat from her skin was beginning to burn her. That only brought on other dark memories, and Maeve struggled to keep herself in check and under control.

She couldn’t lose it. Not in front of her aunt and Ash. They didn’t know that she knew. The full truth about her. And now they couldn’t. 

_ Stay away from Summer faeries… they’ll destroy you as soon as look at you… they can’t be trusted…  _

“When did you get back? How long are you staying?” Ash gushed as she let go of Maeve and stepped back. The older woman couldn’t help but be grateful for the years of ignoring things that were right in front of her. As her cousin stepped away and sat down, it was easier to hide her true thoughts.

“I moved back a week ago,” she said, a tight smile on her face. From the look Ash was giving, she could tell that she was starting to slip. “But actually… I was just about to leave. I’ve got… something I need to take care of. But maybe we could catch up another time?” 

Maeve quickly stood and gathered up her purse, only pausing to look down at Aislinn. 

“Uh, yea. Sure,” Ash said, obviously disappointed that Maeve was leaving so soon. 

“Great. Just give me a call,” Maeve said before rushing out of the apartment, not even bothering to hug either of them good-bye. It was foolish, but Maeve couldn’t help as the overwhelming desire to get away took over her.

It was easy to ignore everyone - faeries and humans - as she nearly sprinted home, her thoughts whirling. It wasn’t until she got back to her apartment and locked the door that she took a deep breath and slowly let it out, willing her heart to stop racing. 

_ You cannot let them know who you are. The Summer Court will kill you… _

Maeve dropped her purse on the stand next to the door and yanked off her scarf before beginning to pace around the living room despite the pain starting to radiate up down her leg from her knee. But she couldn’t bring herself to sit down.

While she had always taken her mother’s ravings with a grain of salt, every single thing that she had ever said to her growing up came rushing back into her mind. All the horrible things about the Summer faeries. How evil and vile and selfish they were. 

But surely that couldn’t be true. Aislinn was now one of them - a powerful one if what Maeve saw was anything to go by. She had always been so kind growing up. Surely she wasn’t selfish or bad or evil. Surely she wouldn’t hurt her. They were family. Family didn’t hurt each other.

_ Of course, they do. Look at your mom. Look at your father - whoever he is,  _ a voice in her head said.

Maeve stopped pacing and groaned in frustration. She was starting to get a headache from the rollercoaster of emotions she had been through in not even two days. She needed to talk about this with someone. Get some answers. For a moment, she thought to call her mother, but quickly dismissed that. Outside of the fact that they had taken away her phone, she didn’t necessarily trust whatever she had to say. 

She then thought about Aislinn. The right thing to do would be to be upfront with her. Finally tell her the truth and ask her what happened. But she dismissed that one as well. She still wasn’t completely sure that her mother hadn’t been right.

Then one name entered her mind. One person who would be neutral. Someone who could be a confidant. Someone that she could finally share her secret with. 

Seth. 

She looked over at her purse and walked over, retrieving her phone. Yes. Seth would help her make sense of all this. He was once close to Ash and seemed to be aligned with the Dark Court. 

She could trust him.

~~~

Aislinn wanted to call Maeve right away and ask what was going on, but instead found herself at the loft. She then thought about calling Seth, but stopped, remembering that they were no longer together. Sighing in frustration, she began pacing as heat radiated off of her. 

“What’s going on?” Keenan asked, drawn to the room by her presence. She stopped and looked over at him. It seemed as though he was the best choice she had at the moment for a confidant.

“It’s my cousin. Maeve. She’s back in town,” Aislinn said quickly. 

“So… I take it you want a guard duty for her,” Keenan said, already moving to call his advisors.

“No, I mean, probably. But that’s not it,” she said, still not sure just what she had witnessed. She knew that Maeve had been through a lot the last two years. Had been through a lot her whole life. Part of her felt guilty for not keeping in touch, but with everything going on here - becoming Summer Queen, Leslie, the courts on the verge of war - she just hadn’t thought about it. Not to mention, it wasn’t as though Maeve had answered many of her calls or texts either. But now she was here. At possibly the worst time. 

Keenan walked over to her, the concern evident in his eyes.

“What’s going on?” he asked. Aislinn sighed and shook her head. 

“It’s weird… she’s never mentioned having the sight, but when I walked in and she saw me… it was like… she really  _ saw _ me,” Aislinn said, meeting his eyes. “I suppose it could be possible… we don’t know how Grams, Mom and I had the Sight. Maybe it just runs in my family and she got it too?”

“What did she do?” Keenan asked.

“It was like… she was afraid of me,” Aislinn said. “And… when I hugged her, I could feel her tense up. Like she was in pain. But… why would that happen? I wasn’t doing anything…”

“Maybe she does have the Sight… and she was just confused? Overwhelmed?” Keenan offered, trying to remember this Maeve. Aislinn hadn’t really mentioned her at all in their time together. Aislinn sighed and walked over, sitting on the couch and running her fingers through her hair. “You haven’t ever told me about her…”

“She’s older than me… about four years. And she moved away in high school to attend this big dance academy. Became a professional dancer. And she was good. Really good,” she stopped speaking a moment and looked over at him. “I mean… everyone just knew that she’d make it big and never come back here. And I was happy for her even though I missed her. She had a bad life before… but then… two years ago she was in a bad car accident. Her fiance died and she couldn’t dance again... I went to see her a couple times, but then… we just… stopped talking.” 

Aislinn couldn’t help as memories from the one visit to the hospital she had made with her grandmother. Seeing her once strong cousin lying in a hospital bed, covered in bandages. The dead look in her eyes. It was enough to break anyone. And then she had cut off contact completely. Aislinn spent a lot of time back then worrying about her, hoping she was okay. Maeve had sent the occasional letter or card to her grandmother, so they at least knew she was still alive. But they knew little more than that.

She had been relieved when she walked in and found her sitting on her grandmother’s couch.

Keenan moved to sit next to her, though kept a bit of distance. Even though he had broken things off with Donia for Ash and she had broken things off with Seth, things still weren’t completely settled between them. But he still cared for her and when his queen was upset, he was as well.

“What can I do to help?” he asked softly. Aislinn shrugged.

“I honestly don’t know what to do,” she admitted, looking at him. 

“Perhaps you should try talking to her? See what exactly it was that spooked her. If she does have the Sight then, we need to put her under the protection of the Summer Court,” he said. Aislinn nodded.

“Yea. She’s already been through so much… I don’t want her caught up in this, but we have to do everything to protect her. And if she does See, even more so,” she replied. She then sat up and nodded, seeming to come to a decision. “I’ll talk to her.” 

Keenan smiled brilliantly, happy that Aislinn was happy. Or at least happy with her decision. He didn’t really care one way or another about this mysterious cousin - or any of Aislinn’s mortals - but he would do whatever he could to make Aislinn happy. And if that meant taking one more mortal into their fold, then so be it.


	3. To Tell the Truth

Maeve continued to pace, waiting for Seth to show up. She was still on edge as she tried to process what she had learned that day. She then stopped and looked to the kitchen. She beelined for the bottle of wine she had there, pouring herself a large glass. She felt she needed it to take the edge off. To prepare herself for what she was about to do.

She had spent her entire life hiding who she was, never telling anyone including her fiance and the man she had hoped to spend the rest of her life with. Once upon a time, she had thought she could leave it all behind, like she had done with her past. That she could truly be happy with Christopher. Dancing. And that her mother’s words really were just crazy ramblings. That she could ignore who she was and not have anything to do with the faery world.

It had been so easy to ignore when she was away from Huntsdale.

But Fate had other plans, showing her that she couldn’t run away from what she truly was. That she wasn’t normal and never would be. 

Not to mention, when she really thought about it, she could never leave it behind. Chaos always followed her. Her childhood had been nothing if not chaotic. And even though she had a few years of respite, once again her life had been thrown into chaos. The difference was she had barely survived it this time.

She had just taken a large drink when there was a knock at the door. She looked over, knowing that it must be Seth. Still holding the glass she walked over and opened it, feeling mildly calmer at seeing him there. 

“Bit early for that, don’t you think?” he asked as he stepped in, his eyes falling on the glass in her head.

“Need it,” she said, shutting the door and turning to follow him into the living room. He was looking around, taking in the high ceiling and then the photographs on the wall. 

“You and Christopher?” he asked, glancing back at her. She nodded, but didn’t say anything. That wasn’t why she had asked him to come over. Placing the glass on the table, she took a deep breath and faced him. “What happened, Maeve? You seem upset.”

“I met with Ash today,” she said, wrapping her arms around herself. Seth didn’t reply, just stood there waiting for her to speak, though his eyes traveled to the flesh exposed on her neck. She reached up and put her hand over it, just now realizing that she had forgotten to put her scarf back on. 

“It’s okay,” he said, giving her a reassuring smile. “How did that go?”

“I…” Maeve looked away, gathering her thoughts. She then met his eyes. “How long have both of you been faery?” 

“Me, not so long. Ash… over a year,” he said. Maeve nodded. “Didn’t she tell you that when you spoke with her?”

“We didn’t get to that point,” Maeve said. Seth frowned in confusion.

“Then how did you… oh,” he said, his eyes widening slightly. “You can See, too.” 

“Always have,” Maeve said. “Since I was born. Known about faeries. Or well, to be honest, I’m not completely sure how much of it I can trust considering it came from my mom. And she doesn’t have the best grip on reality.” Seth was silent a few moments.

“Why don’t you tell me what you’ve heard and I’ll let you know what’s true and what’s not,” he said calmly. Maeve nodded, fear seizing her heart for a moment. This was just the beginning. She was about to tell him something that could put her in danger. For his part, Seth kept his distance, sensing she needed the space. 

“I’ve always been able to See,” she started. She reached up and pulled the charm out from under her shirt. It was probably better to show him as she told him. “My mom can’t See… I suppose that’s how she got into the mess that she did. She didn’t used to be the way she is, or most of it, from what Aunt Elena’s told me… She, ah… she met a faery one night at a bar...” Seth remained silent. Maeve reached behind her neck and unclasped the necklace, taking it off and setting it down on the table. She didn’t meet his eyes, unsure of how he would react. “And well… got me as a result.” 

She finally looked up at him and found his eyes wide in surprise. But there was no judgement. No hatred. Just surprise.

“He, ah, left that charm for me. Told Mom that I had to wear it at all times or else the others… they would know what I was. They might try to hurt me to get to him,” she continued. “Or take me away.”

“Maeve, do you know who he is?” Seth asked softly. Maeve shook her head. 

“I don’t even know his name,” she admitted. “Just that… he was part of the Dark Court. That’s it. And apparently hated Summer faeries. Mom was pretty messed up when he left. I mean, occasionally she would try and hold it together, but then… well… you know... ” 

“Does Ash know about this?” he asked. Maeve shook her head.

“I freaked out and ended up running out of the apartment as soon as she got there. Mom said I couldn’t tell anyone,” she replied. “That it wasn’t safe. That they could… hurt me. Especially the Summer faeries. She really seemed to hate them.”

“I can understand why. There hasn’t been that much love between the Dark and Summer Courts. I mean, there’s barely peace between them now even though there’s a new Dark King,” Seth admitted. “But it’s not as bad as it was when you were born.” Maeve breathed a sigh of relief.

“So Ash… she wouldn’t… we’ll be okay?” she asked. Seth didn’t answer for a while, which only made her worry more. 

“We’re not really talking right now, but… I don’t think Ash would do anything to hurt you,” he finally said. “She’s…”

“Some sort of super powerful Summer faery,” Maeve finished for him. “I could tell that much. Even though I ran out pretty quickly. Just… kind of brought up bad memories and all…” Seth stared at her in confusion for a moment before his eyes fell on her scars again. Understanding came into his eyes.

“Right,” he said. “She’s the Summer Queen.” Maeve’s eyes widened. 

“No shit… suppose that was the complicated you mentioned,” she said. A pained expression came over his face.

“Yea… I still love her. And I think she still loves me, but… it’s definitely complicated,” he said.

“Because she’s got a king now, right?” Maeve asked.

“Well… I mean… yea. But it’s more than that,” he said. “But that’s for another time. Right now, we’re talking about you. You’re half faery.” Maeve nodded. 

“Yea,” she said. 

“And you don’t know who your dad is,” he continued. “Just that he was part of the Dark Court.”

“Still correct,” she said. Seth looked away from her, seeming deep in thought. “Do you… do you know who he could be?” Seth sighed.

“There’s only so many faeries in the Dark Court capable of being with a human and not killing them,” he said. “But you’re definitely not half Hound.” 

“Hound?” Maeve asked in confusion.

“I’ll introduce you sometime,” he said, smiling at her. Maeve nodded, feeling somewhat better. “You should probably speak to the Dark King. If your dad is one of his, he can probably help you find him. Will probably want to take you under the Court’s protection as well.”

An involuntary shiver ran through her. She had overcome part of her fear - finally told someone her secret. She wasn’t sure that she was ready for the entire world to know about it. She had no idea who her father was or what kind of enemies he might have made. Actually, when she thought about it that way, maybe she should go see the Dark King right away. If only so she felt protected.

“It’ll be okay, Maeve,” Seth said, taking a step towards her. “You’ve already met him, actually… Niall.” Her eyes widened as she thought to the quiet, handsome faery. She had sensed that he was powerful and now she knew why. Perhaps that’s why she had felt an odd pull to him. 

Perhaps allegiance to the Dark Court was a genetic thing.

“Do we have to go now?” she asked, starting to feel slightly overwhelmed again. “I mean, yea, I know that I should go, but… this is all… a lot.” 

Seth walked over and pulled her into a hug.

“Sure, we can wait a bit. But don’t wait too long… and I think you should speak with Ash. Tell her the truth,” he said softly.

“I will, I just… I need to think about all of this. You won’t say anything to him until I do, will you? Or Ash?” she asked, stepping back from him. “Not until I’m ready?” Seth sighed and then nodded.

“But if he asks me… I can’t lie to him,” he said, not mentioning Aislinn. 

“I know,” Maeve replied. “Whole weird faery thing… I can still lie, but it’s uncomfortable.” He nodded and glanced around the apartment. 

“Anything else you want to know?” he asked.

Maeve laughed shortly and shook her head. She then walked over and sat on the sofa, absentmindedly massaging her knee even though the pain had subsided.

“I mean - yea. Sure there’s a lot for me to learn, but… if it’s alright, I think I just need to process,” she admitted. Already she was clearly thinking about where she wanted to go. While her leg kept her from professionally dancing, she could still do some. As long as she didn’t push it.

It still helped her clear her head when she needed it.

“Alright. You can call me anytime,” Seth said, standing. “And I’m serious… you need to talk to Niall soon.”

“I know,” Maeve replied. She walked him out, then turned and looked over at the charm. Sighing, she walked over and put it back on, then went upstairs to her bedroom to change.

~~~

Niall felt like an intruder. He shouldn’t be there, but yet, he couldn’t stay away. He had intended to just wander around, but then he had come across Maeve as she was walking down the sidewalk. He wasn’t sure why he followed her, but there it was. The pull. Without thinking he had followed her to the dance studio where she worked, his shadows happily dancing around her as they walked.

His feet had taken over his body, leading him after her even though his mind was clearly telling him that this was wrong. Following a human woman who didn’t know he was there. Hadn’t he already gotten himself into trouble this way before?

The dance studio was empty with all the classes for the day finished up, but after unlocking the door, she went straight to a back studio and sat her bag down on the floor before pulling off her shoes and then jeans to reveal black dance leggings underneath and then walking over to a stereo and putting on soft music.

He leaned against the wall, telling himself that he wouldn’t stay long. He just wanted to see her dance. That was it. He’d watch for a bit and then leave her in peace.

Maeve walked over and stood in front of the mirrors a moment before taking a deep breath. Reaching up, she pulled off the scarf from around her neck, dropping it on the ground, and then reached down to the hem of her long-sleeve, loose shirt, slowly pulling it off. Niall sucked in a quick breath as he pushed off from the wall. 

She was in a gray, tight tank top, but it left a fair amount of skin on her upper body exposed. Puckered and discolored skin ran all down her right arm and up across her right shoulder, chest and back, stopping just under her hairline. It was in stark contrast to the smooth, pale skin on her left arm and shoulder.

Maeve stared at herself a moment before she tossed the top aside and moved to the middle of the room. She closed her eyes and began swaying slightly with the music, listening to it. 

Then she moved.

It was as though someone - or something - else had taken over her body as she lost herself in the music. She had opened her eyes, but she wasn’t there. She was somewhere else, some other plane. Niall stepped away from the wall, completely entranced. He had never been drawn to human dancing, but there was something different here. Something… otherworldly.

His shadows began to follow, mimicking her. They then spun around her, following her as she floated around the room. 

She then spun across the room and leapt into the air. But when she landed, there was a grunt of pain and she fell to the floor, gripping her leg. Niall found himself moving towards her, but stopping. She didn’t know he was there. She couldn’t know. The shadows hovered over her, worried.

It didn’t stop him from wanting to make sure that she was okay. To take away the obvious pain that she was in.

Maeve took deep breaths, closing her eyes as she massaged her leg, grimacing slightly. She then straightened her back and opened her eyes, wiping the tears off her cheeks. She stood, putting most of her weight on her good leg and limping over to her bag. After tossing everything in, she reached down and slung it over her shoulder, turning to the door. 

Niall held his breath as she passed by him, flipping the light off. For a moment, he swore that she had glanced at him, but there was no way she could know he was there. He then followed her before she shut the door, expecting that she would head out. But instead she limped towards the back. For a moment, he wondered if he should keep going, but found his feet taking him after her, his shadows keeping at her sides and reaching out to touch her. She walked into a locker room and dropped the bag on a bench and then walked over towards the showers, turning one on and then limping back to her bag. He looked towards the door, knowing that he definitely should leave. 

She sighed heavily and pulled her tank top off, revealing a sports bra underneath. Her entire right side was indeed covered in burn scars that continued down under the waistband of her leggings. She then turned and limped to the mirrors there, studying her body. She frowned as she turned, lightly running her fingers over the damaged skin. 

Something stirred in him, seeing her pale skin forever marred. He wanted to rush up to her, take her into his arms. Caress her. Whisper to her that she was beautiful. That she would always be safe with him. It shocked him how strong the compulsion was, coming seemingly from nowhere.

But he didn’t move towards her. Instead, he turned and walked out of the room feeling as though he had already intruded enough on her privacy. However, he also knew that he couldn’t stay away from her. Not even if the Summer Queen and King demanded it themselves.

~~~

As Maeve moved back to the bench to finish undressing, she knew that he was gone. Had seen him leave out of the corner of her eye, his shadows following him. Part of her had been surprised when he followed her to the studio, but she chalked it up to curiosity. His shadows certainly seemed curious. It told her that he didn’t sense what she truly was and that Seth had kept his word. Otherwise he wouldn’t have followed her to the locker room. 

She wasn’t sure why, but she wanted him to see her. All of her. Had taken a slight thrill in the fact that he was watching her. A thrill she hadn’t felt in a long time. It was strange. She had never wanted anyone to see her scarred body in its fullest, but there was something about the Dark King that had her losing her fears. It was odd - a being that existed to incite fear in others incited excitement in her. Though that was the other side of the equation - the Dark Court lived off lust just as much as anger, chaos and violence. 

It was a nice feeling, she had to admit. She had lost her confidence after the accident. She had lost a lot after the accident. Limping to the shower, she stepped in and let the hot water pour over her, feeling the tension slowly leave her body. 

She thought over the day. Discovering her cousin was a Summer monarch. Coming clean about her own background with Seth. Now that it was all said and done and the dust somewhat settled, a small feeling of contentment ran through her. 

But there was still fear there. While she felt better about finally telling someone, there was still so much more that she didn’t know. Who could be out there that might want to hurt her just because of who her father was - whoever he ended up being. 

It was going against everything her mother had ever told her. Don’t tell anyone. Don’t let any of them know that you see them. Keep quiet. You’re only safe if no one knows what you’re  _ his _ daughter. 

Maeve chuckled darkly to herself. How would anyone be able to know that she was his daughter if she didn’t even know who he was.

But that was something to worry about later. For now, she just wanted to get home where there were no faeries to secretly watch her. Hopefully.


	4. Keeping Secrets

Seth glanced over at Niall, who seemed lost in thought. They had been at the Crow’s Nest for a good hour or so and he hadn’t said much. While he had been quiet more often than not lately with everything going on, this was a bit extreme for him. Even his shadows seemed on edge, flinting all around him.

“The car accident that Maeve was in, do you know how it happened?” Niall finally asked, looking over at him. Seth’s eyebrows rose. He hadn’t expected him to ask about that. Maybe he was strong enough to see through Maeve’s charm and knew the truth about her.

“No. Not really,” Seth said. “Just that her fiance was driving…” Niall nodded and looked back at his drink. 

“I followed her today… I didn’t mean to, just she walked by and…” 

“Really?” Seth asked, curious about why Niall would follow Maeve.

“Yea, I… I saw her scars,” he replied. 

“What? How?” Seth asked, feeling slightly protective. But at the same time, if Niall had seen them, she likely knew that he was there. Had wanted him to see them. But it didn’t change the fact that Niall was currently under the impression that she couldn’t see him and had violated her privacy. Niall grimaced, seeing the look that Seth was giving him.

“I know, I shouldn’t have. But… she was at the dance studio and I didn’t know she was going to pull off her shirt,” he said, not meeting Seth’s eyes. 

He could tell that Niall felt embarrassed, but at the same time he was a bit confused. The Dark King had only ever been enthralled with humans. Or Irial. It was unlike him to be fixated on another faery. Granted, Maeve was only half. Perhaps it was her human side that drew him in. 

Not to mention, he thought that Niall was still hopelessly in love with Leslie. Now that he thought about it, she hadn’t come up once since Maeve’s arrival. 

“I think… you should talk to her,” Seth said. He knew that Maeve would need to tell Niall the truth eventually and that she would likely be part of his court. Though he supposed she could also choose the Summer Court, if she wanted. Or no court at all. But for some reason, Seth couldn’t help but think she would choose Dark. Niall looked over at him, his expression unreadable.

“Why?” he asked. Seth took a deep breath, thinking over his words carefully. He wanted to keep his promise to Maeve, but knew that if Niall asked him directly, he couldn’t lie. So he needed to choose what to say wisely.

“Just… there are some things that you should hear… from her,” Seth said. Niall nodded slowly, though a curious look came over his face. Seth was sure that he knew he was keeping something from him, but hoped that their friendship was enough that Niall would trust him on this.

For his part, Niall didn’t push it, turning to lift his glass to his lips. Seth then cleared his throat. 

“You wouldn’t by chance know of any others in your court that have half human kids besides Gabe, would you?” Seth then asked. Niall looked over at him.

“Not that I’m aware of, though it’s not like I kept track while I was away from them. Why?” he asked, leaning closer to his friend. 

“Just… curious,” Seth said nonchalantly. Niall frowned.

“We tend to keep our halflings close. Otherwise Sorcha might take them,” he continued. Seth nodded again, thinking it over. Most of the others would have likely brought their children in or kept them close. Which was why it was so curious that Maeve’s father - whoever he was - had done everything he could to keep her hidden. The other courts he could understand, but why from his own court that could provide more protection for her?

Why would he - whoever her father was - do that? Did he not want her to embrace her faery side? Was it because of who he was? Did he want her to live a human life? Most of the faeries he encountered only seemed to care about their own interests. Hence the confusion. If Maeve’s father had kept her hidden away, it was for a reason. And one that likely wasn’t completely wrapped up in solely her well-being. 

There was always a reason when it came to faeries - Dark, Summer or otherwise.

Sighing, Seth pushed it aside for the time being. As long as Maeve kept who she was from Niall and the others, Seth couldn’t ask too many questions about her father. It would lead to other questions from Niall that Seth didn’t want to answer. 

So for now, it was best to just… let it be.

~~~

Maeve had just poured herself a glass of wine when the knock sounded on the door. She froze for a moment, unsure of who would be coming by to see her at that time of night. Seth or Aislinn would have called or texted first. She didn’t really know anyone else in town.

Sighing, she walked over and opened the door, surprised and yet not completely surprised to see Niall standing there. She couldn’t help as a spike of irritation ran through her. Had Seth gone back on his word and told him?

“Hey,” she said, trying to cover up her surprise and annoyance. 

“Hi… may I come in?” he asked, seeming a bit nervous. Part of Maeve wanted to laugh, finding it slightly funny that the great and strong Dark King would be nervously shifting on his feet at her doorstep. If it weren’t for his constant companions, she might almost think he was a normal guy.

“Sure,” she said, stepping back to let him in, now surprised that she was letting him into her apartment. “So… what brings you here?”

She walked over to grab another wine glass and shot a look towards him. She was nervous, that was clear, but it didn’t seem to be because of him - who he was - though Niall knew there was no way that she could know, other than the usual fear that mortals got from him. She placed the glass down and pulled her cardigan tighter around her, while pulling her hair out of the bun she had it in, covering the puckered skin that was just visible on the side of her neck. He could see the same patch on her chest just before she covered it with the cardigan. 

It didn’t bother him - he had already seen her scars. But he couldn’t help as a protectiveness coursed through him. Who had hurt her like this? Where were they so he could hurt them in turn? Sure it was an accident, but even accidents had someone to blame for them.

He then shook his head, pushing the thought away. He didn’t even know this woman, other than the fact that she was Aislinn’s cousin and a dancer. No. Had been a dancer. 

For her part, even though Maeve knew that he had seen her scars, it was habit to hide them. One that she couldn’t seem to break. And she still wasn’t completely sure if he knew what she was or why he was here.

“I…” he stopped speaking as she paused in pouring the wine into the glass, her eyebrows raised. Niall wasn’t sure why he was there. Why he had allowed her to see him? What Seth said about talking to her stuck in his head and he found that he couldn’t ignore it. There was an urgency coursing through him that had directed him to her apartment rather than to his own home. 

He couldn’t deny that there was something that pulled him to her. And he wanted to find out what it was in case it ended up being a weakness. A threat. He had already let one human away from him because of weakness. 

“Just in the neighborhood,” he finished weakly with a smile. It was the best he could do without revealing the full truth. Maeve appeared a bit dubious, but turned to finish filling his glass regardless, not voicing it. She then held it out to him and walked back to the living room, settling on the sofa and picking up her own half empty glass. 

He followed her, glancing around the large room and noting that there wasn’t any metal anywhere. It was odd considering the building was a converted factory. Granted, it’s not like it would have any effect on him now. He settled on the sofa, though keeping a bit of distance from her, as she watched him cautiously. His shadows settled around him.

“You make a habit of showing up unannounced?” she then asked.

“You make a habit of letting strange men into your flat?” he responded. There was a faint flicker of a smile on her face. 

“Not usually. But you aren’t what I would call strange. We’ve met,” she said. “Seth says you’re good people. So you must be.” 

Niall sipped at the wine, wondering what Seth would say about him being here right now. He glanced at Maeve, seeing her pulling the cardigan tighter around her body yet again, further attempting to hide her scars. He then looked away from her, seeing the large black and white photographs on the wall. 

“Is that you?” he asked, studying them. 

“Yea… well, before,” she said, shifting on the sofa. He glanced at her out of the corner of his eye and then stood, moving closer to study them. There were a few of her alone, but most of them were with a man about the same age. Though they were in various costumes and such, it was clear how they felt about each other. He didn’t have to ask who it was. “My dance partner… and fiance…”

He looked back over, seeing her stare down into her glass. It was obvious that the accident had left her with pain. Both physical and emotional. What surprised him was that she willingly surrounded herself with memories of what she had lost. He turned back to the photographs.

“I heard about what happened. I’m… sorry,” he said, feeling his words were completely inadequate. A soft laugh drew him to look back over at her.

“It’s okay. You don’t have to say that,” she said, meeting his eyes. “Everyone does, but…” He stepped over to her, feeling himself begin to fall into their dark depths for a moment. There was so much hidden in them. Things she didn’t say not just to him, but to anyone. What was she trying to hide? “I know that it’s awkward. But yea, you don’t have to apologize. It’s not like it was your fault or anything.”

“Whose fault was it?” he found himself asking, moving closer to the sofa. He wanted to know. He wanted to punish them. Just as suddenly as the thought entered his mind, he balked at it. Where had such an intense feeling come from? He barely knew her. But he couldn’t help the need to protect as the images of her burned flesh floated around in his head. Maeve shifted slightly under the intensity of his gaze. 

“No one,” she said, looking away from him. “It was an accident.” That was a lie. He could sense it. He moved to sit down on the sofa.

“Seriously, Maeve… who did this?” he pushed, sitting next to her as his eyes were drawn to her neck. Maeve’s eyes widened as she looked at him, her cheeks turning slightly pink. She swallowed.

“It was a car accident,” she said, though it appeared as though she was fighting something. Perhaps telling the truth. “Why are you here really?”

Niall sat back from her, not realizing that he had been leaning towards her. Where she had been hesitant and nervous before, now she was suddenly staring at him intently, her eyes moving over his face as though she were studying something, though not his scar. 

It was almost as though she could really _ see _ him.

But that was impossible. She didn’t know about the faery courts. Or that his kind even existed. Did she?

“I just… wanted to check up on you - since you’re sort of new to town,” he said. “You seem to be close with Seth. He’s one of my best friends, so…” It was the truth. Not the full truth, of course, but as much as he could say. A look of confusion came over Maeve’s face. But just as quickly, it disappeared as she reached for her wine glass that she had put on the coffee table. 

His gaze drifted to the scar on her chest without thinking. The cardigan had fallen open slightly as she leaned over and he wondered how much more of her body was covered in them. His thoughts then drifted to his own body covered in scars. 

As if feeling his gaze, she reached down and pulled the cardigan closed again.

“You don’t have to hide them,” he said, unsure of where it came from. Maeve looked over at him, her eyes wide. “Your scars. They don’t… bother me.” 

She knew he had seen most of them before. Christ, this was getting awkward. She wasn’t sure just how long she could keep up the ruse. She still wasn’t completely sure just why she was keeping it up. It was now obvious that Seth had kept his promise. If he had told Niall about who she truly was, he would have said something by now. Asked her about it from the beginning. But instead, they were both playing some sort of awkward dance around each other.

He was obviously unsettled about something. Though she couldn’t imagine just what. His shadows moved closer to her, reaching out as though they wanted to comfort her.

“Guess you’re used to people staring,” she said ruefully, turning her eyes to the glass in her hands, finding it easier to talk without looking into his eyes. She glanced up at him and dragged her finger lightly across her cheek. “Can’t really hide that.” 

“No, I can’t,” he said, relieved that she hadn’t asked how he got it. “I have more.” Maeve looked up at him fully, her eyes wide. Then a soft smile appeared as she seemed to relax slightly.

“Suppose I understand now why Seth thought we’d get along,” she replied, bringing the glass to her lips. “Scar buddies and all.” Niall found himself relaxing as well. “You going to give me some sort of talk about inner beauty or acceptance and all that shit?”

“No,” he said simply. And really, he couldn’t. He was the Dark King. What did he know about inner beauty as the King of Nightmares? Though he did know a thing or two about self-acceptance.

Maeve studied him a moment before putting her glass down and straightening up. She reached up to the cardigan, though hesitated. He could see the struggle in her eyes as she gripped the wool material. But before he could say anything, she pulled it open, revealing the scarred flesh that ran down the right side of her neck across her chest and disappeared under the tank top she was wearing. Despite the earlier hesitation, she stared at him, waiting for some sort of response. Almost as though she were daring him with her eyes to say something.

Niall supposed others looked away, finding it difficult. Not so much that they found the skin distasteful, but more so because they knew how painful it must have been. But he kept his face neutral as he studied her skin, determined that he wouldn’t be like the others. He wouldn’t pity her or look away. If anything, he felt as though he found a kindred spirit. Someone who could understand pain that left marks. 

Just as he was about to reach out to touch her, she pulled the cardigan back closed and reached for her glass, the spell she held over him broken. But he didn’t look away from her. 

“I’ve never shown anyone… not willingly,” she said softly, though her cheeks were turning pink again. Niall’s eyebrows rose at the admission. Maeve couldn’t meet his eyes. Part of him wanted to reach out to her and guide her to look at him. Look into his eyes. If anything to prove that he wasn’t just anyone. That he understood. And he still found her beautiful no matter how much of her body was covered in the painful scars. 

But he didn’t. He didn’t even understand why he was here. Why he was feeling this way. And that worried him. He looked around the room, suddenly feeling that he should leave. He shouldn’t be here. Aislinn - and then Keenan - would be angry if they found out. And the last thing he needed was a war with the Summer Court. They were barely on good terms as it was.

But just as strongly, he wanted to stay.

“Actually… it’s good that you’re here. There’s something I want to talk to you about,” Maeve started, still not looking at him, though she had reached up and was clasping a necklace he just now noticed. 

“Yes?” he asked, silently begging her to look at him. She took a deep breath and opened her mouth, but before she could speak, his phone went off. Glancing at her, he pulled it out of his pocket, seeing that it was from Gabriel.

Relief and annoyance ran through him in equal parts. He wanted to hear what she had to say. It seemed important, but at the same time it worried him. Maeve was mortal. And the last time he had gotten tangled up with a mortal it hadn’t gone so well. It never went well. The familiar pain filled his chest at the thought of Leslie. But she was far away. Safe. Happy.

He looked up at Maeve, smiling sheepishly.

“Sorry. I, ah, need to get going,” he said, lifting the phone. “Emergency.” She nodded as he put his glass down and stood. The two walked over to the door in silence. Maeve opened it, with Niall stepping out. Neither really knew what to say - the whole exchange had been odd. “If it’s okay… I can come by tomorrow. Or we could meet at the Crow’s Nest. Talk about whatever it is you want to talk about.” 

Maeve’s eyes widened slightly, but she nodded.

“I’ll… think about it,” she replied, smiling slightly. He returned the smile and then turned, leaving. 

Once he was out of sight, Maeve let out the breath she had been holding and shut the door. She had thought for sure his sudden appearance meant that Seth had told him about her. Why else would he have shown up? Then she realized he hadn’t. But at the same time, part of her was relieved that she was off the hook for at least the time being. It had been a rather emotional day as it was.

She walked back into the living room and sat on the sofa, reaching for the remote and turning on the TV. Dancing hadn’t cleared her head like she wanted, though she blamed that on the fact that Niall had followed her to the studio. Perhaps some mindless TV would help.

Just as she settled in, her phone went off. Reaching for it as she frowned, Maeve wondered if she’d get a few minutes to herself today. 

_ Can we meet tomorrow? _

It was from Ash. Sighing, Maeve shook her head then looked towards the windows. She wasn’t sure just why she was constantly drawn to look out them. So instead she looked back down at the phone in her hands. Aislinn was yet someone else that she couldn’t avoid forever. 

_ Sure. _

Maeve then put down the phone on the table and settled back into the sofa, hoping that she would finally get some peace and quiet.


	5. Misunderstandings

Maeve couldn’t help as she paced around her apartment. Aislinn would be there in a few minutes. She had gone over and over what she would say to her nearly all day as she cleaned and rearranged the place, too nervous to sit still or relax.

This was Ash, she kept reminding herself. Even if she was the new Summer Queen, that didn’t mean that anything had to change between them. They had been close when they were younger. Told each other their secrets- well, most of them, anyway. Even with the shock of finding out that Aislinn was no longer human, Maeve still held a fondness for her. This would be okay. Ash wouldn’t turn away from her just because she was half-faery. Even if the person responsible for that half had been part of the Dark Court. 

Maeve froze as there was a knock on the door. She quickly rushed over, pausing to glance in a mirror and double-check that her scarf was in place. She then turned to the door and pasted a smile on her face as she opened it. 

“Maeve,” Aislinn said with a smile as she stepped forward and hugged her. Maeve tried hard not to look at the guards that were just behind her. All those years of pretending that they weren’t there and now she was about to slip up. Though in the big scheme of things, it probably didn’t matter. The whole point of today was to tell her the truth.

“Come on in,” Maeve said, trying to ignore the temperature of Aislinn’s skin and where it took her mind. 

Intense heat. Flames licking at her skin. Her own shrieks of pain as she shouted for Christopher to wake up. For someone to help them.

“This place looks great,” Aislinn said, looking around at the apartment. “Seriously.”

“Thanks,” Maeve said, going to the kitchen to retrieve the tea she had made. She took a few moments to get her heart and breathing under control. It wasn’t Ash’s fault that she reacted this way to her. She was Summer incarnate and not like she knew what memories that heat would dredge up in Maeve’s mind.

She walked into the living room, two mugs in her hands as Aislinn stood at the windows, looking out at the street below.

“Great view, huh?” Maeve said, stepping up to her side. Aislinn looked at her and nodded, accepting the mug. Maeve looked down, seeing more faeries loitering than usual. Probably because Aislinn was there and she was bound to attract attention. She then turned and walked over to the sofa, sitting. “Sorry I ran out the other day… I…”

Maeve stopped, forgetting whatever excuse she had come up with earlier. She had spent a rather long time thinking of it. But just as she was about to say it, it fluttered out of her head. 

“It’s okay,” Aislinn said as she sat next to her, putting her mug down on the coffee table. “I think I can understand why.” Maeve’s eyes widened. Shit. Did Aislinn already know? “How long have you been able to see faeries?”

Maeve breathed a sigh of relief and chuckled, shaking her head.

“Always,” she admitted. “But… Mom said I couldn’t tell anyone.” Aislinn reached out and squeezed her hand.

“I get it. Grams told me the same thing,” she replied. 

“But… you’re…”

“Yea, I wasn’t always. This happened about a year ago,” Aislinn said, motioning to her hair. “Apparently I’m some long prophesized Summer Queen.” Maeve was slightly taken aback by how flippant she was about it. From the way Seth spoke, it seemed like it was a lot more trouble and work than she was making it out to be. 

“That must have been a shock,” Maeve said carefully. Aislinn nodded. 

“But it’s nice that I don’t have to keep it a secret from you. I’ve missed you,” Aislinn said, smiling sadly at her. “I’m sorry that… that I lost touch.” Maeve shook her head.

“It’s fine,” she said. “And obviously you had your own things going on.”

“It’s not okay, Maeve. You were hurt. In and out of the hospital. I should have been there for you,” Aislinn said, her face turning serious. The temperature in the room started to rise slightly and Maeve fought off the urge to fan herself. 

“As you can see… I survived,” she said, still trying to keep the smile on her face. 

“Yea… but you shouldn’t of had to do that on your own,” Aislinn said, a pained expression on her face.

“Look… what’s done is done. I don’t blame you for anything. Christ, you were just a teenager. And I wasn’t exactly taking your calls and texts when they did come,” Maeve said with a sigh. “But I’m here now. Back. Not going anywhere. We can make it up to each other.” She patted Aislinn’s leg and gave her a genuinely warm smile. The smile started to return to Aislinn’s face.

“Good,” she said. “Though, well, perk of being my cousin - you now get protection.” Maeve stared at her a moment.

“From what?” she asked, her thoughts going back to everything that she had spoken to Seth about. 

“From the other courts… I am the queen and I would breathe a bit easier if you had guards, just in case. There are a lot of bad faeries out there who might try to get to me through you,” Aislinn said. Maeve took a deep breath and slowly let it out. That she hadn’t thought about.

But she figured now was probably a good time to tell her.

“About that,” she started. Aislinn jumped slightly and then rolled her eyes, pulling her phone out from her pocket. She groaned in frustration.

“I told him not to bother me,” she grumbled.

“The king?” Maeve asked, an amused smile on her face. Aislinn nodded and stuck the phone back in her pocket.

“It can wait. You’re more important right now,” she replied. 

“Okay. So as I was saying-” Aislinn groaned again, reaching back into her pocket. “Seems important…”

“With Keenan everything is important. Even when it’s not,” Aislinn muttered. She then looked up at Maeve. “I should go see what he wants. I’m sorry.” Maeve shook her head, waving her hand in the air.

“It’s fine. You’re a faery queen now… sure that takes up a lot of your time. Like I said, I’m not going anywhere,” Maeve said. Aislinn leaned over and hugged her tightly.

“I’m happy that you’re back. And I promise you - one girls’ night with no distractions so we can talk about everything,” she vowed.

“I’d like that,” Maeve responded as they stood and she led her cousin to the door. “See you next time.”

“Love you, Maeve,” Aislinn said, hugging her one more time.

“Love you,too, Ash.”

And then she was gone, though the guards studied Maeve a bit before they followed her out. Sighing, Maeve shut the door and turned to look around the now empty apartment. She glanced down at her mug and decided she didn’t really want tea at the moment. She walked it to the sink and then reached for a wine glass and filled it. 

Sipping it, she walked over to the window, the street outside now bathed in twilight. Most of the faeries from earlier had moved on, though she could see a few Summer faeries standing and scanning the street. Likely her new security detail. 

“This should be fun,” she muttered to herself as she walked back to the living room.

Well, that was one big thing out the way. Almost. She still hadn’t told Ash the full truth. Part of her felt as though she should tell her before she went to Niall. Ash was family, after all, and deserved to know the truth first. She had already given Maeve guards. Maybe they would even be okay with letting her be a part of her court. While she felt comforted around the Dark Court, Maeve still wasn’t sure she wanted to be completely in their fold. And Ash would probably expect her to join the Summer Court just because they were family.

Her eyes fell on the photographs and the familiar pain and guilt welled up within her. Who was she kidding? Even if Ash accepted her, she didn’t belong in the Summer Court. She was a creature of darkness. Always had been, even if it was diluted by her mother’s blood. Despite all her good intentions and fighting it, she still couldn't suppress her dark nature.

Swallowing, Maeve looked away from Christopher’s smiling face, wishing for once she could turn off her feelings and escape them for just one night. For whatever reason, the first face that filled her mind was that of Niall. She took a large drink of her wine, wondering why she would think of him.

But now that he was in her thoughts, she couldn’t shake him off. Perhaps it wouldn’t hurt to go find him. He had said that he and Seth would be at the Crow’s Nest tonight. It was a Friday night. There would be a band. Perhaps some of her old friends would be there. If anything, she could get out and have some fun. 

Forget about the guilt, Dark Court, Summer Court and everything else for just a bit. 

Maybe Niall could help her to forget for just a bit. Maeve started at that thought. What the hell? Sighing, she drank a bit more. Right. Dark King. Of course he would evoke those feelings in her. She was part mortal after all, though she was sure he could do it just as easily with any faery. Especially those that were weaker than him. Which was just about everyone, she supposed.

She walked over to the kitchen and put the glass on the counter, silently debating what she wanted to do. Stay in or go out? Drink another bottle of wine alone or surround herself with others?

She had cut herself off for the last two years. That was long enough, she finally decided.

~~~

The bar was far more crowded tonight than it had been last time she was there. For a minute, Maeve was overwhelmed by the sounds, the lights, the bodies pressed up against each other.

The heat - both literally and otherwise. 

There were far more faeries there that night, though more of them were from the Summer Court, which made Maeve slightly tensed out of habit, though she knew that none of them would hurt her. Especially when she came with a couple of guards. They didn’t speak to her, rather kept their distance. And she was more than happy to ignore that they were there.

But standing in the crowded bar, she felt her heart start to race slightly as her eyes searched for a familiar face. 

“Maeve…” 

Instantly, her anxiety slid away at the sound of his voice. She breathed a bit easier as she turned and saw Niall standing behind her, two beers in his hands and a pleasantly surprised look on his face.

“Hey,” she said, smiling in return. She saw the two summer guards frown, obviously not happy with being in the near vicinity of the Dark King. But they were invisible to humans; Maeve continued to pretend that they weren’t there, following Niall over to a table where Seth was already sitting, tapping his foot in time with the band.

“Look who I found,” Niall said. Seth looked over, his eyebrows rising as he saw Maeve. She waved slightly as he stood and hugged her.

“So… not yet?” he whispered in her ear.

“I tried. Got interrupted,” she muttered in reply. He nodded and stepped back as she sat down.

“Let me get you something to drink,” Niall said, seeming more at ease tonight than he had been when he randomly dropped by her place yesterday.

“Thanks,” Maeve replied with a smile. There were a few other dark faeries around them and she found herself a bit more comfortable than when she first walked in, though she could see the Summer guards watching her closely from a distance.

“Take it you spoke with Ash,” Seth said, glancing over at them.

“Yep. Though, before I could get to the big reveal, we got interrupted,” Maeve replied. “God, it’s like now that I’ve decided not to keep the secret, everything is stopping me.” Seth chuckled and reached for his beer. “But honestly… I don’t want to think or talk about it tonight…” She looked over at the band and started bobbing her head in time with it. 

“So… letting loose. That’s the goal?” Seth asked. 

“Yep,” Maeve replied. 

Soon enough, Niall was back with another beer. Maeve thanked him as she took the glass from him and started sipping at it. She started moving a bit more, dancing in the chair as she closed her eyes and focused on the music. The band wasn’t anything amazing, but she loved any and all music.

What she didn’t see was Niall watching her, a half smile on his face. Or Seth chuckling at Niall. 

“Let’s dance,” she heard in her ear. Maeve’s eyes popped open and she turned, not realizing that Niall had moved to her side. He already had her hand and was guiding her up from the chair and out to the dance floor. She could sense her security team tensing slightly, but yet none of them moved to stop them.

Maeve smiled as she felt Niall place his hands on her waist, guiding her to move with him and the beat. She was locked in his gaze, forgetting everything around them as she fell into his eyes, letting the darkness envelop her completely. Rather than being terrified, she found herself feeling things that she hadn’t felt in two years. 

Wherever he touched her, it was as though electricity was coursing through her. And she didn’t want it to stop. Wrapping her arms around his neck, she pulled him closer.

“Careful there,” he said softly, a cautious note in his voice. Though he was still smiling, there was a sense of worry in his eyes.

“Or what? You’ll seduce me?” she quipped in return, not sure where that had come from. He winced, something that didn’t go unnoticed. “Trust me… you don’t have to worry about me.” With a wink, Maeve let go of him and sauntered towards the bar. She wasn’t sure just what had come over her, but she liked it.

Again, maybe it was finally being surrounded by her kind. Or maybe it was Niall drawing out her darker side. But she didn’t want to stop. She felt alive in a way that she hadn’t felt in years. In a way that she normally only felt when she was dancing. In a way that had stopped after the accident. Even though somewhere in her mind an alarm was going off, she chose to ignore it.

Maeve ordered a shot and quickly drank it, then ordered another.

“And just what are you doing?” Niall asked, his voice low in her ear as his hands came to rest on her waist. 

“Having fun. You know how to do that, right?” she asked, without looking at him. When he didn’t reply, she reached for the second shot and turned slightly, looking up into his eyes. “Let’s see how much fun we can get into tonight.” Tossing back the second shot, she then turned and started back to the dance floor, pulling Niall with her. 

Once again, they were close, their bodies brushing up against each other. His hands roaming up and down her sides. A sultry smile appeared on Maeve’s face as she looked up at him through hooded eyes. She quickly lost track of how many songs had passed. How long they had been dancing, though somewhere in the back of her mind, she thought it strange that her leg hadn’t started hurting yet. Usually she couldn’t go that long without pain shooting up it.

Niall had just spun her and pulled her close to him again, staring down into her eyes. He reached up and tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear, his lips moving closer towards hers as his other hand ran down her side. 

Just as he was about to kiss her, there was jolt through Maeve’s body as she felt his fingers on her skin. She froze, putting both hands on his chest and stopping him from moving any closer to her as she shut her eyes. Quickly, Niall let go of her.

“I’m sorry… are you okay?” he asked.

“I’m fine,” Maeve said. “Just give me a moment.” 

“Is everything okay? What did you do to her?” 

“She’s okay. This is none of your business.” 

Maeve felt his tight grip on her arm as she opened her eyes and looked over, seeing one of the Summer Guards. A rowan.

“She’s the Queen’s cousin. You’d do well to remember that,” the guard said. 

“Yea, and I’m the Dark King. You’d do well to remember  _ that _ ,” Niall said, glaring at him. A look of confusion then came over his face as he glanced at Maeve.

“Yes, I know about Ash. Both of you stop this. I’m fine. I just need some air,” Maeve said, looking back and forth between the two. She then pushed away from Niall and stumbled outside of the bar, taking long, deep breaths. She bent over, dropping her hands on her knees.

What was that? She had never felt anything that intensely. Outside of the pure lust she had going for Niall, it was like raw power was coursing through her veins. Perhaps the Dark Court called to her more than she wanted to admit. But then as soon as he touched her scar, everything came crashing down and she was jolted back into reality. 

“Are you really okay?” 

She looked over, seeing the guard had followed her out, a look of concern on his face. She chuckled.

“Seriously, it’s okay. You don’t need to worry about me,” she said straightening up. “Honestly, I think I just need to get home-”

“I’ll escort her,” Niall said, walking out from the bar. Maeve couldn’t help but roll her eyes as the Summer guard turned to glare at him. Great. A testosterone battle. 

“The Summer Queen said that we were to make sure she is kept safe,” he retorted. “That includes from you.”

“I’m not going to hurt her,” Niall growled as he narrowed his eyes at the faery. “And I don’t take orders from the Summer Court. Not anymore.”

“Really, guys, you don’t need to do this,” she said, starting towards them. Heaven forbid they resort to actual blows. 

“I’m under orders-”

Before he could finish, Niall pulled his fist back and punched him, the faery stumbling a few steps back.

“Shit! NIALL! STOP!” Maeve shouted, already moving to make sure that he hadn’t broken the rowan’s nose. The guard reached for her, but stumbled again, grabbing at the front of her sweater. Maeve felt the leather strap around her neck snap, but before she could stop the charm from being pulled off, the rowan faery was on the ground, the charm still in his hand. 

It was as though time froze for a moment. She heard the quick intake of breath and knew that Niall saw her for who she truly was. The rowan faery had yet to look up at her, but anyone out on the street would know. 

“You…” 

Maeve looked over, meeting Niall’s eyes, which were wide. 

“Surprise?” she said weakly. 

“What the?”

Both of them looked over, seeing the rowan push up to his feet, his own eyes wide in shock. 

“You’re…”

“Yep. Faery. Or half, if we’re being technical,” she said wryly. He looked down at the charm in his hand then back up at her, throwing it to the ground. He then turned and ran off before either Maeve or Niall said anything. “Well that’s not exactly how I wanted things to go…”

Niall bent down and picked up the charm, then held it out to her.

“Put that back on for now. We’re going somewhere to talk.” 


	6. The Truth Shall Set You Free

Maeve stood and stared at Niall, waiting for him to say something to her. He said nothing to Seth when they went back into the bar to retrieve her things, though it was clear that he understood what was going on from the look on his face. They then turned and left, quickly making their way back to her apartment without saying a word.

When they walked in, he stood and studied her a moment before motioning for her to take off the charm. She did so and walked over, holding it out to him.

“Where did you get this?” he asked, holding it close to his face, his brow furrowed.

“My father,” she said. “He left it with my mother when I was a baby. Said I was supposed to wear it all the time.” He looked up at her and then back down at the charm.

“And you’ve never taken it off?” he asked.

“Only when I’ve been home by myself,” she replied. “Never when I’m around others.”

“What do you know about it?” he then asked.

“Nothing. He just said that it would hide what I really was from other faeries,” she said. He nodded and handed it back to her. 

“It also binds your power,” he said. Maeve’s eyes widened.

“My… powers?” she asked. “What powers? I’m just half faery.” He studied her a few moments before speaking.

“Some things all fairies have. Speed. Strength. Glamours,” he said. “Other things differ depending on what kind of faery you are. You’re only half, so you won’t have that to the extent as a full fey.”

“Can you tell… what kind of faery I am?” she asked. When she looked at herself in the mirror without the charm, all she saw was a sort of dark shimmer around her. And in most things she was a normal human - had never thought to see if there was something more that she could do. Granted she also always wore her charm. Maybe she should try doing things without it. “I never knew my father and it wasn’t like he explained things to my mom outside of him being a faery and part of the Dark Court… Just said that I needed to be kept hidden.”

“Whoever he is, I wish he wouldn’t have hidden you away from the Dark Court,” Niall said. “It’s not safe for half-human faeries to be out on their own. Especially without someone to teach them how to control themselves.” He continued to study her. “Why didn’t you tell me this before?”

“I tried yesterday. I wanted to. But then you had to leave,” she said, frowning slightly. “I wasn’t going to keep this a secret forever.”

Niall’s eyes widened as it suddenly hit him that she had seen him all along. From the first time he walked up to her and Seth on the street. To the other day at the dance studio.

“Fuck,” he murmured. 

“Ah, yea, about that,” Maeve said, walking passed him towards the kitchen. “Care to tell me why you were following me?”

“I… I’m not sure,” he admitted. She paused a moment before returning to her task of pouring wine. She then walked over and sat on a stool in front of the island, not bothering to offer him one. She took a drink. “I’m sorry. I just wanted to make sure you were safe. I suppose now I understand why.”

“Because I’m faery and my father was one of yours,” she replied. He nodded.

“Does Aislinn know?” he asked. Maeve shook her head.

“I was going to tell her today when she came over to talk, but some sort of Summer Court business came up and she had to go. Though I’m guessing she probably knows by now,” she replied before taking a drink. “Seth knows. He’s been pushing me to tell you and her.”

“He’s right. You should have told me that first day. You’ve been going around unprotected,” Niall chastised. Maeve rolled her eyes.

“If you haven’t noticed, I’ve been taking care of myself for a long time now. I think I would have been okay,” she said, getting a bit testy. 

Niall wouldn’t admit it out loud, but her lack of trust in him hurt. He was the Dark King and her father was part of his court, making him think that she would choose to be part of it as well. He would have looked out for her and taken her under his wing. More than anything, Maeve needed protection right now - the incarnate of War was out running around creating chaos. There was no doubt she had seen this coming and was already planning something.

“But suppose it doesn’t matter. Now you know and now I’ve got to figure out how to deal with Ash. She’s going to be pissed when she finds out I’ve kept this from her for this long,” Maeve said.

“Why?” he asked. “Did you not know that she could See?”

“Oh, I knew. But my mother said I couldn’t tell anyone. That  _ he _ said it wouldn’t be safe,” she said, rolling her eyes. “If he was really so worried about my safety, you’d think he would have stuck around to look out for me.” 

Niall frowned. On the surface, it would seem like the Dark Court would be more likely to sire a child and then abandon them.

However, even some of the more aggressive of his court had a soft spot for their offspring. Even though Gabriel left most of his kids in the human world, he still checked in on them. Had taken in Ani when it was known that she could feed on mortals. 

It made him even more curious as to who her father was. Perhaps it was a former member of the Dark Court who had gone solitary. If that was the case, he doubted they would ever track him down, whoever he was. 

“Regardless of who he is, you have the protection of my court,” Niall said formerly. “I consider you one of mine.” Maeve stared at him a moment, blinking. She then nodded.

“I appreciate it,” she said before taking another drink of her wine, though was careful not to specifically swear loyalty. She still needed to talk to Ash first.

“And… if it could help… I’ll do whatever I can to help you find your father,” Niall said. Maeve furrowed her brow.

“You don’t have to do that,” she said quickly.

“If anything, he should be held responsible for his actions. You should have been brought to us long before,” he said. Though at the same time, Niall couldn’t help but think that it might have been a good thing. If she had been brought to Irial, he wasn’t sure what would have become of her.

Granted, it’s not like the life she had lived had been any better. But at least she hadn’t been subjected to Irial’s depravity. 

“I… okay,” Maeve replied, looking away from him as she felt a bit of hope. One of the biggest questions in her life had always been who her father was. She was eager to have it answered.

She looked up, suddenly seeing Niall standing in front of her. Her eyes were wide as her breath caught in her throat. 

“I’m serious, Maeve. I will do whatever I can to keep you safe and to help you,” he said softly, his eyes telling her that he was very, very serious. She swallowed and nodded. “You are no longer alone. You’re with your kind.”

For a moment, she couldn’t breathe as she felt tears prick at her eyes. She didn’t realize how much she needed to hear those words until he had uttered them. But along with a long-sought acceptance of who she was, there was something else there. A stirring inside her. It was different than before. On the dance floor, it had been lust and nothing more. Or well, that’s what she had thought in the moment.

But this… whatever  _ this _ was, it slightly terrified her.

Sensing her fear, Niall stepped back, giving her space. 

“It’s been a long day. I’ll… leave you for now,” he said, looking away from her. He had seen her tense up when he moved closer to her.

“Okay,” Maeve managed to say, not looking at him either.

“If you need anything, call me,” he said, finally looking at her. She looked at him and nodded. Niall then walked to the door and left. Quickly he made his way out of the building and stood on the sidewalk, looking up at her apartment as he pulled out his phone and made a call to Gabriel, letting him know that he wanted a small guard on Maeve for the time being. 

He then leaned against the building across the street and waited for the first of the guards to arrive. While he stood there, he couldn’t help but wonder… just who was her father?

~~~

“What?” Keenan asked, his skin glowing as he stared at the young guard.

“There’s no mistaking it. She was wearing a charm that masked who she was,” he said. “As soon as it came off, I could clearly see that she’s part faery.”

“And the Dark King was there?” Keenan asked, glancing towards the shut door. 

“Yes, but I don’t think he knew before then. He seemed just as surprised,” the guard said. Keenan sighed and ran his fingers through his copper hair, moving to look out the windows of his study.

“Aislinn went to see her today, but… she hasn’t mentioned this to me. Surely she wouldn’t hide it from me if she knew,” he muttered to himself. 

“My king?” the guard said. Keenan turned and looked at him.

“When you were at her apartment earlier, did the Queen mention this to you?” he asked. The rowan shook his head.

“She said nothing. Just to watch her and protect her should she need it. That’s why we followed her into the bar. She went straight to the Dark King,” he said. “We kept a close eye.”

“Well, I think it’s obvious why she went to him - she’s probably one of his,” Keenan said. He studied the guard for a moment. “Did anyone else see?”

“No,” the guard replied. “It was just the three of us.”

“Good. Let’s keep this between us for now. No need to worry the Queen until we know just what kind of threat this is,” Keenan said. 

“What’s a threat?” Aislinn asked, walking into the study without knocking. Keenan’s eyes widened, but it was too late now. She would have it out of him one way or another. He sighed.

“It’s your cousin,” he said. 

“What about Maeve? Did something happen to her?” Aislinn asked, worry painting her features. She looked at the rowan. “I told you to keep her safe!”

“Maeve isn’t hurt or in any danger,” Keenan said. Aislinn whipped her head around to look at him. “Though… she might be a threat.”

“What threat could she be?” Aislinn scoffed. Keenan glanced at the guard and then back to Aislinn.

“Aislinn… she’s not human,” he said bluntly. 

“Not… what? She’s faery? But… I just saw her today and… I would have seen,” Aislinn said, trying to wrap her head around what he was saying. 

“She was wearing a charm that hid her from other faeries,” Keenan explained slowly. “There was a bit of a scuffle tonight at the Crow’s Nest with the Dark King and the necklace was accidentally ripped from her neck.”

Aislinn’s eyes widened.

“Is she okay? Where is she? Did you just leave her there?” she shouted, the room becoming uncomfortably warm as she looked at the guard. “Why would you leave her there with him!?” The guard looked at Keenan and then back at her.

“Because… we’re pretty sure that she’s more aligned with them than us,” he said. Aislinn’s mouth dropped open as she looked over at Keenan. 

“This must be some sort of mistake. I mean… surely she would tell me this. And how would you know?” she said, running her fingers through her hair as she began to pace. She then stopped as her eyes widened. “Oh my god. She did try to tell me. Today. But then you wouldn’t stop calling and I had to leave…” She looked towards the door. “I need to go to her.”

Keenan reached out and grabbed her arm, yanking her towards him. 

“Let me go, Keenan!” Aislinn shouted, turning her fury towards him. 

“For all we know, he’s already taken her to his court,” he said. “You can just go waltzing into the Dark Court in the middle of the night!”

“I will if my cousin is there!” Aislinn shouted back. 

“For all we know, she can’t be trusted! That she’s one of them!” Keenan shouted.

“She is MY family! I will not abandon her!”

“You didn’t even know she was a faery!” Keenan retorted. “For all we know, she doesn’t trust  _ you _ !” Aislinn stared at him, her nostrils flaring. “I mean, think about it. She obviously knew what she was. She took measures to hide it! Why hasn’t she told you?”

“Maybe she’s afraid,” Aislinn said, frowning. “She’s been on her own for a long time…”

“Don’t you think she would have told you earlier today if she wanted you to know?” Keenan pushed.

“Like I said - she was going to tell me something today, but you made me leave!” Aislinn shouted. The two monarchs stared each other down for a couple of tense moments. Finally Keenan sighed and looked away.

“All I’m saying is to wait. We need more information before we go seeking her out. At least call or text her to make sure she’s at her place before you go running off to find her,” Keenan said. Aislinn nodded.

“Fine,” she said, relenting. She then spun on her heels and stalked out of the study. She quickly made her way to her room, where she began pacing, her mind whirling. How could she have missed this? And when did it happen? How did it happen? Was it Irial’s doing? Had he taken her mortality from her? Or was it someone else. As far as she was aware, only a few faeries could turn mortals into what they were. Had she somehow come across Sorcha?

And how did they know that she would go to the Dark Court? Maybe Maeve didn’t want to join the Dark Court. Though she had to admit that part of her knew that Niall was a good king in the sense that he would look out for her. 

Sighing, she fell back on her bed and stared up at the ceiling. 

With everything else going on, this was the absolute last thing that she needed.

~~~

Niall sighed as he walked into his large private sitting room. While he would occasionally meet with people here, he tried to keep all court matters firmly outside of his living quarters so he could have a place of peace to himself. As it was, very few people were allowed back here.

“Wondered where you got off to,” Seth said casually from where he was sitting on a sofa, reading. He glanced over at Niall, though didn’t drop the book. “How did it go with Maeve?” he asked, his eyes flicking back down to the book. Niall sighed and walked over, falling onto the sofa next to him. Seth looked over at him. 

“How long have you known?” Niall asked.

“She told me after she first met with Ash at her grandmother’s and discovered that she was the Summer Queen,” Seth said, finally putting the book down. “I wanted her to talk to you right away, but she was… afraid.”

“There’s no reason for her to be afraid of me,” Niall replied, frowning. 

“I know that. You know that.  _ She’s _ still learning that,” Seth replied. “You have to understand, there have been very few people in the world Maeve’s been able to trust. It doesn’t come easy to her.” Niall nodded, remembering the photographs in her apartment. 

She had trusted him. The human man that had once been her partner in dance and was set to be one in life. Though the more Niall thought about it, the more he wondered if that had been doomed to fail regardless of the accident. It was clear that the charm she wore bound her power. If his suspicions about her - about what her father was - were correct, it would have been dangerous. And it was yet one more thing she and Niall had in common.

_ Only if she left him. He would have lived if she always stayed at his side… _

Niall shook his head. He had no proof, just an idea. The charm had given him the idea. And the fact that her mother was unstable. Granted, that didn’t always mean anything. She could have been that way before her encounter with a faery. Niall realized there was still a lot that he didn’t know about the newest potential member of his court. 

“What are you thinking?” Seth asked. Niall looked over at him, his eyebrows raised.

“Who her father is,” he admitted. “And just what else there is to learn about her… Anything more you can tell me?”

Seth studied him a moment and sighed again.

“I’ve told you all that I know,” he said. “We were friends, but she kept a lot of things to herself. Though… still heard things. Her mom was pretty messed up most of the time. Was unstable. Though suppose she had her good and bad days. When she was younger, that’s when she stayed with Ash and her grandmother a lot.” Niall nodded slowly. “And yea, you know the rest. Dance career. Fiance. Car accident.” He didn’t speak, just waited for Seth to continue. “She’s tough. Always has been. Kept smiling through the worst of it so no one would know how bad it was back home. Worked to pay the bills and for her dance lessons, though I know Ash’s grandmother helped with that a lot. When she wasn’t working or dancing or out with us, she was studying and applying to whatever dance academy and company she could find. I helped film some of her audition tapes.”

“She… was amazing at the studio,” Niall said, getting lost for a moment in the memory of watching her dance. Seth chuckled.

“You should have seen her before the accident,” Seth replied. “Now that was amazing. Especially after she met Christopher… it was like those two were born to dance together.” Niall frowned at that. He wasn’t sure why the mention of the mortal made him jealous. He was dead. “But yea, if you want to know more, you’ll have to ask her yourself.” 

Niall nodded slowly again.

“Yea… I’ll do that…”

~~~

Irial blew a stream of smoke as he stood in the shadows, carefully hidden from sight from the few faeries that stood watch outside the building. As soon as he saw Niall’s interest in the woman, he had taken to watching her when he could, trying to discover just why he was taken with her.

But even he had to admit that standing out on the street outside her apartment was only getting him so far. He had yet to actually get a good look at her. He stomped out his cigarette, his eyes fixed on the window. As if she knew he was watching, she then stepped into view, taking in the faeries standing watch. 

It was then that Irial froze a moment and then nearly forgot himself and stepped out into the street. Even from a distance, he recognized her. Or well, he supposed that was because she looked so much like her mother. 

“Would you look at that,” he murmured as a smile appeared on his face. Shaking his head, he chuckled and turned, wandered down the alley. 

This was going to be rather interesting, wasn’t it?


	7. Another Day

“See you tomorrow, Maeve!” the woman running the front desk called out as Maeve walked to the front of the studio. She waved and then pushed the door open, stepping out onto the sidewalk and pulling her scarf higher around her neck. She glanced around, noting the few faeries. Though the cat was out of the bag, so to speak, she still wore her charm, taking comfort in it. She also kept to ignoring the faeries that were always around.

You never knew what human might come up and notice her staring into thin air or worse, talking to nothing. 

Sighing, she pulled the strap of her bag higher up on her shoulder. She glanced across the street, seeing the same faery following her. He was never with the others from the Dark or Summer Court. And had been keeping tabs on her since the weekend. She wasn’t sure what he was after - if it was just curiosity or something more. But for some reason, she didn’t feel nervous about it.

She turned the corner, knowing that he was probably still behind her, yet keeping a distance. Another glance around told her that the other guards weren’t there. Frowning slightly, she thought that wasn’t right. But at the same time, she still wasn’t afraid. Which just confused her even more.

She stopped at a shop and looked down at the display, watching him out of the corner of her eye. He paused, still watching her. She then straightened and went inside, purchasing a bottle of wine. He was still there when she came out. She had a feeling that he knew she could see him. What she didn’t understand was why he never approached her. Perhaps on orders from someone. Niall or Ash?

Maeve continued on, not stopping until she had arrived back home, dropping her bag on the floor next to the island and continuing on into the living room. She turned on the stereo and turned up the music before going back to the kitchen and starting on dinner. 

She couldn’t help as she hummed with the music and started dancing slightly. Once she was finished, she sat at the table and ate, then did the dishes. It was much the same routine that she had kept every night. Food. Music. Dishes. Wine. Sometimes she’d do other chores. Sometimes she would sit on the sofa and stare at the photographs on the wall, getting lost in the memories of dancing with Christopher. 

Tonight, she poured another glass and stepped over to the window, looking down at the street. A few faeries from the Dark Court were grouped together at one end of the street. At the other end, there were a few Summer faeries. She didn’t know if they were there to protect her or to watch her for the protection of others. Her heart constricted slightly. She hadn’t heard from Aislinn. She had sent a couple messages, asking if they could meet and talk, but yet nothing. No response.

Hopefully the Summer King wouldn’t keep her own cousin away from her, would he? Or there was always the other option… that Aislinn had willingly turned away from her.

Continuing to scan the street, her eyes fell once again on the faery with dark hair and dark eyes that looked all too familiar. He nodded to her and smiled. Frowning, Maeve turned away, walking back towards the sofa.

Perhaps Niall would know about him. 

She glanced at her phone, hesitating. She remembered how she felt just before the altercation with the rowan guard. How she had easily given in to… something. Whatever it was. Her darker side, perhaps. In the light of day, it scared her. How she reacted around him. What if it were to happen again? Was she ready to face that intensity again?

But he was the Dark King and one of the few people who could give her answers she needed. So, sighing, she walked over and messaged him - asking if he could come over to talk. It had only taken a second for him to reply that he was on his way.

Before she could sit on her sofa, there was a knock at the door. That was fast. But then she remembered that faeries had super speed. She walked over and opened it.

“Thanks for coming,” she said, stepping back to let him in, quickly looking away from his eyes. Just that split second of looking into them and she already started to feel heat begin building in her body. 

“It’s not a problem,” he replied, an easy smile on his face as he walked in, his shadows following. He stopped just inside the kitchen, turning to look at her.

“Can I get you something to drink?” she asked, playing with the cardigan and pulling in up to cover her chest a bit more - still stuck in her nervous habit.

“Wine is fine,” he said, looking at the glass in her hand. She nodded and walked over, pouring him one and then handing it to him.

She then walked over to the sofa and sat. He slowly followed, sitting on the other side and keeping a fair amount of distance from her, also remembering too clearly the other night at the Crow’s Nest. The shadows settled along the back of the sofa and the arm, leaning against him.

“So what did you want to talk about?” he asked. Maeve fidgeted with her wine glass, not looking at him. She took a deep breath and slowly let it out. 

“I guess… I just… wanted to learn more about the Dark Court and faeries in general,” she said, glancing at him as she took a drink. She figured that was a good enough place to start.

“Well… I only became King a few months ago,” he replied. “I wasn’t part of it before. I was solitary for a long time and then… I joined the Summer Court under the previous king and served there for a few centuries.” 

Maeve’s eyes widened slightly. Of course she knew faeries were immortal, but it was still a bit shocking to learn that Niall was far older than he looked. And it only made her wonder how it affected her. She wasn’t impervious to injury, she knew that. And so far had aged normally. But would she be immortal as well? Thousands of questions began running through her mind and for a moment, she completely forgot about what had happened at the Crow’s Nest or the real reason why she had called him over.

“Maeve… are you okay?” Niall asked. She looked up, noticing that he had moved closer, a concerned look on his face.

“Sorry just… realized that there’s still a lot that I don’t know about this world,” she said, smiling nervously. “Like… am I immortal? Do I have powers? What can I do? Will the others accept me, knowing that I’m only half-”

Niall’s chuckle cut off her string of questions and she looked back over at him, her eyes wide.

“I’m sorry, it’s not funny… let me see if I can answer some of those for you. Though in turn, do you think you could answer some of mine?” he asked. Maeve nodded. “No, you’re not immortal, unfortunately. Though I suppose that it wouldn’t be too difficult to turn you full fey - if that’s what you wanted. Yes, you will be accepted among the Dark Court. We have others that are half-fey. As for what you can do, I’m not sure. If I knew who your father was, then perhaps I would have a better idea.” 

Maeve sighed heavily, looking back at her wine glass.

“Isn’t that the question of the hour,” she said dryly. 

“What did your mother say about him?” Niall asked. Maeve furrowed her brow, thinking back over all the times he had come up. It was difficult to piece it all together as her mother could never seem to talk about things in chronological order. Even when she wasn’t drunk, she was scattered. 

“She told me that she was out with her friends one night at a bar… it was an adventure to her - she wasn’t really a party girl back then. I didn’t believe her until my Aunt Elena confirmed it. And then… she met him. All I got out of her was that he was handsome and… intoxicating,” Maeve said. She saw Niall frown out of the corner of her eye. “She was involved with him for a week… and then he left. And a few more weeks later, she found out she was pregnant with me…”

“How did she know what he was?” Niall asked. Maeve took another drink of her wine.

“He came back - after I was born. Told her that he was a faery and part of the Dark Court. Gave her that charm and told her that I was to wear it always,” Maeve said. “To be honest… It’s insane that anyone would believe him, though considering my mom...” 

“What exactly was your mother like?” Niall pushed. Maeve looked over at him, her brow furrowed.

“Well… she’s… different. Been sick as long as I can remember. She’s had a few diagnoses. Bipolar. Borderline Personality Disorder. Been on different meds. They would help for a bit, but then they didn’t,” she said. “It was better when she wasn’t drinking.” Niall got an odd feeling at the back of his mind as his suspicions only grew.

“She was… up and down. Sometimes she would be just fine, though a bit… off in some way. She would have a good week, and then the next thing I know, she’s off trolling around bar after bar… looking for him,” Maeve said. “Aunt Elena swears that she wasn’t that bad before, but… honestly, it probably just hadn’t started showing yet…”

Niall’s frown deepened as he looked down at his glass, obviously thinking over something.

“What is it?” Maeve asked. “You look like you know something.” Niall sighed.

“Well… if it’s true that your mother’s condition didn’t start until after she met your father, then I have a good idea what he is,” he said. “It’s called Gancanagh. They are addictive to humans and in turn can be addicted to them - it’s hard to stay away. Usually the human either dies once they are from them or they are driven mad.”

Maeve sat back on the sofa, her eyes wide as all the breath left her. Everything suddenly made sense now. Why her mother was the way that she was. What her aunt had told her was right - her mother was perfectly normal, albeit a big dreamer, before she met her father. But that meant if her father was Gancanagh, then so was she. Her eyes drifted to the photographs on the wall of her and Christopher.

Her heart constricted slightly. She already felt guilty about the accident, but knowing this. It made her second guess everything about their relationship. Had he only loved her because she had made him that way?

“Are there a lot of Gancanagh in the Dark Court?” she asked, forcing herself to look at Niall and not think about Christopher right now. 

“Not at the moment, no,” he said. “I’m… currently the only one.” Maeve choked on her drink, sputtering at the confession. “There were more… before. Years before.” 

She nodded as he patted her back. 

“Sorry… just for a moment I thought you were about to tell me that you were my dad,” she wheezed. Niall looked shocked for a moment and then chuckled, shaking his head.

“No, it’s not me. Obviously. I have no offspring. Haven’t touched a human in... it's been awhile,” he said, though it was followed by a grimace. Maeve made a note to ask about that, but later. It had nothing to do with what they were talking about now. “But I believe this will help. Again, there aren’t so many. At least that I know of.” 

“That’s good,” Maeve said, turning to look back at her wine glass. 

“How… how bad was it? Growing up with her?” he asked softly. Maeve looked over at him, surprised by the worry in his eyes. Part of her was touched that he cared, but she wasn’t sure if it was because he considered her part of his court or if it was something else.

“Sometimes it wasn’t bad. She could be a lot of fun… she wanted to be an actress and sometimes she would take me backstage at a local theater. Show me all the costumes and props… introduce me to the actors,” Maeve said, a soft smile on her face. It then slid off. “But then something would remind her of him and she’d spent the next few weeks obsessing over it… She’d go back and forth between never leaving her room because she was depressed or out roaming the bars trying to find him…”

Niall didn’t respond, just sat waiting. His shadows leaned closer to her. The more she looked into his eyes, the more she wanted to tell him everything.

“I was angry for a long time,” she found herself saying. “I was jealous of everyone. They got normal lives. Had normal moms who did all the things moms are supposed to do… throw birthday parties. Make cookies. Cook dinner. Listen to them. My mom spent most of her time either trying to find him or talking about him. I often felt like she cared about my father more than me.”

“That’s an unfortunate side effect,” Niall said softly. “It wasn’t your fault. Or hers, really. I’m sure she loved you in her own way.” Maeve laughed darkly, her eyes pricking with tears.

“I’m sure she did, but only because I was half him,” she replied. “I tried so hard to keep things together. To make sure we had food. That she was eating. Tried to get her to stop drinking. And… for a while it would work. She would be almost normal, but then…” Maeve sighed heavily. “She put in more effort when I was a kid, but by the time I was old enough to look after myself, she would disappear for a couple days at a time and then I’d get a call from some bar owner and have to drag her drunk ass home.

“And sometimes I’d go stay with Ash and Aunt Elena while she did some AA program or whatever - swearing this time it would be different. There were times when sometimes I wished she wouldn’t come home and I could stay with them.”

“Why didn’t they take you in full time?” Niall asked. While his voice and face remained calm, Maeve could sense the underlying anger in his eyes. She looked away again, a bit overcome by the intensity of it.

“Aunt Elena wanted to, but… I told her everything was fine. I even lied to the social workers when they came. I didn’t want anyone to know how bad it really was,” she said dully. “Even as a kid, I still had my pride. And well… she is my mother. Despite everything… I still love her.” 

“Where is she now?” Niall asked.

“Treatment center the next town over,” she replied before taking another drink. “She doesn’t know that I’m back in Huntsdale. Figured if she didn’t know where I was, she would stay put. And it would buy me some time to figure out what to do when she gets out.”

“Are you considering bringing her here?” he asked. Maeve frowned. She hadn’t gotten around to thinking about that just yet. It always left her overwhelmed.

“I don’t want her here with me, but I’m not sure I have too much of a choice,” she said. “It’s that or… put her in some sort of home - at this point she’s completely incapable of taking care of herself. But I’m not sure if I can afford that…”

“If you decide that’s the best course, I can help you,” Niall said. Maeve looked at him, her eyes wide.

“I don’t need your money,” she said automatically. He sighed and looked down at his glass. “This is my problem, not yours. I barely know you.”

“You’re under the protection of my court - and I always take care of my own,” he said firmly, looking back at her. “If you need help financially or otherwise with taking care of your mother, I’m here to provide it.”

“You do this for everyone in the Dark Court?” she asked. He smiled slightly.

“I’ll admit, it’s not often someone needs something like this, but… yes, I do whatever I can to help them,” he said. “I’m responsible for their survival. For yours, now.” Maeve nodded, looking away as she took another drink.

“I’ll think about it,” she said. She suddenly felt a jolt of electricity run through her body and looked down, seeing that he had placed his hand comfortingly on her knee. 

“Don’t let your pride get in the way,” he said softly. She slowly looked up, meeting his eyes. For a moment, she couldn’t speak as she stared at him, the warmth from his hand quickly spreading throughout her body. Her finger twitched slightly as though her hands had developed minds of their own and were begging to touch him. 

But then he pulled his hand back, looking down at his glass, almost as if he were afraid to touch her longer than necessary. Maeve turned to look down at her own, her thoughts whirling through her head. 

“So… why dance?” he asked.

“Oh, well… I guess… it was just something I always loved doing. And well, it was a good escape from everything going on,” Maeve said. “I was always dancing around the house. And one day my Aunt Elena enrolled me in a dance class.” She took another, larger drink of her wine. “And it turned out that I was actually pretty good.”

“You were… beautiful at the studio that day,” he said softly. Maeve looked at him, nearly forgetting about that. The day she had willingly showed him her scars, though he hadn’t known at the time. 

“You should have seen me before the accident,” she said ruefully, though winced as her eyes drifted over to the photographs. “My knee keeps me from doing most of the technique that I used to.” 

“Your knee?” he asked, turning to her. 

Maeve nodded as she put her glass down and then stretched out her left leg, resting her foot on the coffee table. She pulled up her sweat pants, revealing a large, nasty-looking scar on her knee.

“Pretty much shattered the whole thing,” she said, staring at it. “Took a couple surgeries and a lot of physical therapy just to walk normally again. I can still dance… a bit. But not like before. They weren’t even sure if I’d be able to walk without a cane. I’m okay most of the time, but sometimes it acts up.”

She looked up at him, finding Niall staring down at her leg intently. Without speaking, he reached out with both hands, gently placing them on her leg above and below her knee cap. Part of her wondered what he was doing, but it was hard to focus on that thought as warmth began spreading up and down her leg.

She gasped slightly as it intensified. And then shifted. Her eyes widened as her body came alive in a way she had never experienced before. She gripped the sofa as her eyes closed and wave after wave of pleasure coursed through her. Her breathing became heavy and she felt as though she had far too many clothes on, though resisted the urge to start pulling them off. 

Niall then let go of her and she looked up at him, wanting nothing more than to throw herself on him right then and now. 

“I’m sorry… I should have warned-"

She didn’t give him a chance to finish as she launched across the sofa, her lips crashing into his. It only took a second for him to respond, kissing her back with just as much fervor as his hands came to rest on her waist, pulling her closer. Maeve was now straddling him, pushing her hips against his, chasing the high that she had just experienced.

It was almost as though someone else had taken over her body. 

His hands were suddenly everywhere. Running up and down her sides, then one tangling in her long hair as the other slid under her shirt, gently caressing her scars. A soft moan reverberated through his chest, making the palms of her hands tingle.

Maeve pulled back, the both of them breathing heavily as she quickly pulled her cardigan off and then began kissing him again, running her fingers through his hair. He tried to push her back, his eyes wide as he stared into hers.

“Maeve-”

She shook her head and cut him off with another kiss. He pushed her back, a bit stronger this time and firmly held her away from him.

“Maeve, stop,” he said, though he looked as though he were barely keeping control of himself. From the bulge she felt underneath her, he didn’t have that much more control than she did. 

They stared at each other a moment and then Maeve realized what was happening. She quickly crawled off Niall and reached for her cardigan, pulling it on.

“I’m sorry… I don’t know what came over me,” she said, her gaze falling on the photographs again. A deep guilt began to wash over her.

“It’s okay… I should have told you before just doing it,” he said, trying to catch his breath. 

“Told me what?” Maeve asked, reaching for her glass as her cheeks turned brighter red.

“Sometimes when we heal… it can be very… pleasurable,” he said. Maeve’s eyes widened as she turned to look at him. She wasn’t sure what to focus on with that statement.

“Heal?” she asked. He nodded and looked down at her knee. She followed his gaze and lifted her leg, stretching it out and then bending it. The usual tightness and ache weren’t there. Quickly, she put down her glass and stood, walking to the center of the living room. Carefully, she positioned her feet and then dipped down into a shallow plie. When there was no pain or stiffness, she went down into a deeper plie, something she hadn’t been able to do since before the accident. She then looked over at Niall, a smile spreading across her face.

“I… I can… this is…” she looked back down at her leg and then back up at him. “Can you… can you heal scars?”

Niall stood and slowly walked towards her, but stopped a few feet away, a sad look on his face. He shook his head.

“Oh, well… that’s okay,” Maeve said. It wasn’t completely, but still. She could dance again. Like before. The europhia washing over her was dizzying. Suddenly all Maeve could think about was getting into the studio. Pushing herself in ways she thought would forever be out of her reach after the accident.

“I should… I should go,” Niall said, reminding her that he was still there. Maeve looked up at him, suddenly feeling embarrassed again.

“Yea, sure,” she said, starting towards the front door. She opened it for him. Niall walked through, his shadows lingering to touch her hair. He then stopped and looked over at her. 

“Until next time,” he said. Maeve nodded and shut the door as he walked off. It wasn’t until she was alone that she realized she never asked about the lone faery on the street.


	8. Dark Confusion

Niall sat on his throne in the warehouse where the Dark Court resided, not really paying attention to anything going on around him. The rest of the court was doing what they usually did and he knew Gabriel was talking to him about something. However, for some reason, Niall couldn’t stop thinking about Maeve.

He had been relieved when he discovered she wanted to talk about her father rather than what had happened between them at the Crow’s Nest. Of course, now they had even more in that regard to discuss, though he wasn’t sure he was ready for that particular conversation just yet.

Niall was no stranger to the physical pull someone - mortal or faery - could have over him. He had spent several years with Irial giving into the pleasures of the flesh, leaving a wake of dead or mad humans behind them. It was who he was, after all. Even before Maeve arrived, he could feel the need starting to build up in him, knowing that he could only abstain from it for so long before he would need to give in. 

And then there was Leslie. And Irial.

But this was somehow different and that was what left him confused and concerned. He couldn’t quite understand what it was, having never experienced such an intense connection in such a short amount of time. It transcended the purely physical - though there was most definitely more than enough temptation in that regard - but yet wasn’t exactly romantic, though he could feel himself developing those feelings as well.

He had an intense need to be in her presence. To protect her. To draw from her strength as well as to lend his own to her. Anytime she was in his arms, something began coursing through him, a sort of strength or power. It defied any sort of logic, in Niall’s mind. 

When she had kissed him, for a moment he completely lost control of himself, unable to stop or do anything but reciprocate. It wasn’t like before, when he was drawn to humans. This was an all encompassing desire that refused to be ignored. 

But somehow, he had grasped back onto reality, shocked by what he had seen in Maeve’s eyes. For a moment, they had gone completely black, morphing into dark, vast pools with shadows swirling in them.

He then managed to push her off, but by that time, they had returned to their normal dark blue and he wondered if perhaps it had just been a trick of the mind. It had been dark and he had been rather consumed with the heated makeout session.

“Niall?”

He started, looking up with wide eyes to see Seth standing next to Gabriel, the two of them watching him curiously.

“I’m sorry,” he said, sitting up slightly. “What were you saying?” Seth glanced over at Gabriel and gave him a short nod, then turned back to Niall as the Hound walked away, shaking his head.

“Let’s take a walk,” Seth suggested. Niall nodded and stood, following him out of the warehouse. Probably wouldn’t be a good thing to allow his court to see him distracted and daydreaming. “Want to tell me what’s going on?” 

Niall sighed and pulled out his cigarettes from his pocket, not stopping his stride as he lit one and blew out a stream of smoke.

“You have to ask?” he replied.

“Something happened with Maeve last night,” Seth stated rather than asked. Niall nodded, his brow furrowed. 

“I don’t understand this,” he said.

“Maybe it’s got something to do with the fact that she’s half-human?” Seth suggested. “And well, it’s been awhile since you’ve… you know. Perhaps it’s just that time…”

“It’s not that, though her mortality could have something to do with it… But I’ve never felt this intensely about… anyone,” he said. Seth stopped. 

“What do you mean?” he asked. Niall shook his head, coming to a stop and looking over at Seth. 

“It’s more than just lust, though plenty of that,” he said, frowning slightly. “It’s hard to explain exactly what it is, but it’s not like it was with Irial or Leslie.” Seth let out a low whistle and then started to smile slightly.

“ Careful now, sounds like you’re falling for her, Niall,” he said lightly as he started walking again.

“I barely know her,” Niall retorted.

“You barely knew Leslie. That doesn’t mean anything,” Seth replied. “What did she want to talk about?”

“We… talked about her mother,” Niall said, a slight surge of anger shooting through him as he recalled what Maeve had experienced as a child. How she had been abandoned by her father. It was unfair to her and her mother. 

“Ah, right. Suppose that was a difficult conversation,” Seth said. “For what it’s worth, her mother did try… sometimes…”

“It wasn’t her fault or Maeve’s,” Niall growled. “It was her goddamn irresponsible father.” Seth glanced over at him, seeing Niall’s shadows begin to swirl around him, feeding off his anger. “If I ever find him, I will make him pay for the pain he caused by abandoning them.”

“Any closer to figuring out who he could be?” Seth asked, hoping to calm him down before he destroyed something or someone just to get his anger out.

“No, though I’m sure now that he’s Gancanagh,” Niall said. “Which means she’s half-Gancanagh.” Seth nodded slowly, thinking over the information.

This was interesting and Seth wondered how this factored into Niall’s obviously growing attraction for her, if at all.

“You think she’s Irial’s?” Seth asked cautiously, though he couldn’t help but think it was the most obvious choice. Abandoning her and her mother sounded like something Irial would do. Though keeping it secret from Niall, that didn’t really sound like him. Or maybe it was - he had kept secret what Niall was for years. 

“One problem with that - if it was Irial, her mother shouldn’t have been left addicted,” Niall said with a sigh. “He was the Dark King at the time, rendering him safe for humans, or well, from addiction at least… and he tends to not leave his playthings alive.” 

And even though he and Irial hadn’t been on speaking terms at the time, surely his former lover would have mentioned something to him about having a daughter.

Wouldn’t he?

“So, if it’s not him… who could it be?” Seth asked. “Surely you two aren’t the only ones in the world.”

“We’re not,” Niall said. “Though the others, they’re mostly solitary. I have Gabriel working on names for me - Gancanagh who may have been part of the Dark Court at the time Maeve was conceived and then left. Hopefully we’ll find him soon.”

“Well, at least that’s one issue being taken care of,” Seth said cheerfully. 

“Yes,” Niall replied as his thoughts turned to the other, more pressing issue. 

Just what the hell was going on between him and Maeve? And what the hell was he supposed to do with it?

But it seemed as those answers were to elude him, at least for now.

~~~

“Good! Very good!” Maeve called out as the room full of preteen girls hit their final poses. She grinned, happy to see them pick up the choreography rather quickly, though there were several areas in need of improvement. She hadn’t gone easy on them, that was for sure.

“Now, that time was better, but you need to watch your developpes,” she said, moving to stand in front of them, facing the mirrored wall. Maeve then demonstrated the move with ease, a smile appearing as the students watched her with wide eyes. She had spent all day in her classes demonstrating technique full out that she hadn’t been able to do since before the accident and reveling in it. “That’s all for today. I will see you next time.”

The girls all began chatting loudly as they moved to their things, taking off their pointe shoes and in general getting ready to leave. Maeve drank from her water bottle, then reached down to pull off her ballet shoes, tossing them into her bag. It was her last class of the day and she was eager to get home. 

“Maeve,” a voice said from the door. She looked up, watching as the owner of Frederick’s - Lara Willows - glided into the room, greeting a few of the girls before fixing Maeve in her sight. “I just wanted to say that… even though you haven’t been with us long, we are so pleased with how you’re working out so far.” 

Maeve smiled and nodded.

“Thanks, Lara,” she said.

“Really, you are one of our most successful graduates,” Lara continued, looking at her closely. “Though… something seems different about you today… did you change your hair or something?” Maeve’s cheeks turned slightly pink.

“No,” she said quickly. Lara studied her a bit more and then shrugged.

“Just try not to push yourself too hard with those extensions,” she scolded. “I know it’s fun to show off every now and again, but we really would hate for you to get injured again.” Mauve looked down at her leg and then back at Lara.

“Don’t think you have to worry about that,” she replied.

“Well, great. I’ll see you later!” she called out as she left the studio. Maeve sighed and pulled out her clothes, quickly pulling her jeans on before getting into her street shoes. She then packed everything back into her bag, before pulling on her coat and rearranging her scarf. 

She walked over to the door, flipping off the lights before walking out and waving at the receptionist as she passed. Breathing deeply, Maeve reveled in the crisp fall air, happy that it was finally getting cooler. She adjusted her bag on her shoulder and set off for home, already thinking about what she wanted to make for dinner.

And try not to think about what had happened last with Niall.

Though now that her thoughts had turned in that direction, she couldn’t help but feel a shiver run down her spine as her body began feeling warm and tingling again. Every time she had closed her eyes last night, she saw herself in yet another racy or steamy situation with the Dark King. It was like her brain was stuck in horny teen setting.

Even now, she couldn’t help the wave of desire that rushed through her at the thought of him.

“Fucking get a grip,” she whispered to herself, shaking her head. She then sighed and turned to go into the small shop near the studio to pick up a few things. When she walked out, she stopped and checked her bags and then looked up, freezing slightly as she met the eyes of the dark-haired faery. 

He was back. And she had forgotten to ask Niall about him. Which had been the whole point of asking Niall over last night.

Frowning, Maeve checked to make sure no cars were coming and then started across the street towards him. She figured it was about time to figure out what he wanted with her.

The faery maintained eye contact, smirking slightly, before he turned and started down the street at a quick, but leisurely pace. Maeve huffed as she continued to follow him, starting to jog down the sidewalk. She wanted to shout at him to stop, but there were others around and she could tell that he was hiding himself from humans.

He continued moving, though glanced over his shoulder at her before turning a corner and walking into an alley. Maeve began running, turning the corner not far behind him. She then slid to a stop, finding it empty. She looked around the alley, but he was nowhere. 

“Goddamnit!” Maeve shouted, angry that he had gotten away. Of course, she should have suspected as much. She was no match for faery speed and agility, though she was faster than the average human. Huffing again, she turned and started home, deciding if she saw him outside her apartment, she’d try again.

~~~

Maeve paused in chopping vegetables to take a sip of her wine. The faery had disappeared and had yet to show up, so she focused on making dinner. The fire was going in the fireplace again and she had music playing. It painted a rather cozy picture, she thought. Her eyes then fell on the sofa. Memories of the night before came back to her in quick flashes.

Niall’s dark eyes.

His lips against hers.

His hands running through her hair. Down her body.

His hips grinding against hers.

Maeve threw the knife down, hearing it clatter against the counter as she closed her eyes, taking a few deep breaths and attempting to clear her head. It was just a side effect from Niall’s healing. That was all. A physiological reaction. Nothing more.

_ Then what was that night at the Crow’s Nest? _

“Alcohol,” she said aloud as she opened her eyes. “I drank. That’s it.” But even then, she knew that wasn’t true. She had started feeling it before she drank. “Ok… It’s just physical. It’s been years since… that’s what that is. And he’s the Dark King. That’s his thing. He makes people hot and bothered.”

She looked up around the empty apartment and then shook her head. God, she was talking to herself. This was crazy. She reached for her phone and looked through her text messages. Still no response from Ash. 

Fuck, she needed a girlfriend right about now. 

She quickly sent off another message to her cousin, hoping maybe this time she would answer. Maeve then put the phone down and reached for her glass, taking another sip.

“You don’t feel anything… like that… for Niall,” she said to herself, frowning. She looked over at the photographs on the wall and then made her way over to them, studying Christopher’s face. “God, I miss you…” She reached out and gently touched his face, feeling tears well up. 

She then walked over and sat down on the sofa, running her fingers through her hair.

She had come to Huntsdale to start over again. To get away from the painful memories of her life with Christopher. A life that had been happy. 

Maeve had finally gotten everything that she wanted when she left this place. She was dancing professionally. Found a man who loved her. She had friends. An active social life. Loved her job. Loved the apartment that she shared with Christopher. Loved the life she had with him.

And then she had lost everything in a manner of minutes. 

Or perhaps it was destined to end in flames anyway? Though perhaps not literally.

Maeve looked back up at the photographs. Now that she knew what her father was - what she was - she couldn’t help but wonder if it was real. Or if Christopher was only with her because he was addicted to her. Supposedly her charm was supposed to bind her abilities, whatever they were - keep her from hurting others. She looked down at it, picking it up and rubbing it between her fingers.

It was the only connection she had to her father. While Maeve never considered herself the sentimental type, part of her had always wondered about him. What he was like. If he would have been proud of her. If he loved her.

“Where are you?” she whispered to the charm. Frowning, she thought over everything her mother had told her. It wasn’t much. Maeve then looked up as the idea came to her. It was a long shot. It was likely that the conversation would go exactly like every other time she had brought him up.

But she was getting treatment again. Hadn’t been allowed to drink. Should be clearer. Perhaps this time would be different. And it wasn’t like Maeve had many other options. 

She needed to go visit her mother.

~~~

Aislinn looked down at her phone, seeing another text arrive from Maeve. She started to reply, but then stopped, unsure of what to say. She tossed the phone down on the couch next her, frowning as she drew her legs up and wrapped her arms around them.

She was still reeling from the fact that her cousin was a faery - well, half faery - and she had had no idea. Aislinn vividly remembered the day she had told Maeve that she could see them - she had only been about 4 or 5 at the time. Surprisingly, even though she was older, Maeve hadn’t batted an eye and believed her instantly. Though now Aislinn knew why. Maeve had known about faeries all along. Was one.

It wasn’t so much that she felt betrayed or lied to. If anyone could understand why Maeve would keep something like that to herself, Aislinn could. There was a lingering guilt as well. Life had not been easy for Maeve and once again, there wasn’t anything Aislinn could do in that regard to help her. 

Aislinn picked up her phone again, staring down at the texts. Why was she finding so hard to put together a simple text message to her cousin? She knew that she needed to talk to her. That she wanted to talk to her.

“How are you?” 

She looked up, seeing Keenan walking into the living room, a look of concern on his face. She sighed and looked back down at the phone. 

“Just… thinking about Maeve,” she said. Keenan sat next to her on the couch and placed a calming hand on her shoulder. “I should talk to her.”

“Aislinn,” he started. 

“She’s my family, Keenan. I have to go talk to her,” she retorted quickly as she looked up at him. Keenan couldn’t help but frown slightly. “God, what is it? Is she hurt?”

“The guards I have watching her place saw Niall go in last night,” he said. Aislinn just frowned. “Ash… they think this means she’s joined the Dark Court.” Her eyes widened as she looked back down at her phone. 

Would Maeve do that? Especially after knowing that she was the Summer Queen? They were family. Had known each other since they were kids. Why would she join a court led by someone she barely knew over one led by her own cousin?

“She wouldn’t do that,” Aislinn said. She then stood. “I have to go see her.” Keenan stood as well, stopping her.

“We don’t kn-”

“She is my cousin! And I wasn’t there for her before. I have to be there for her now!” Aislinn shouted, flames now clear in her eyes. Keenan took a few steps back from her, his hands up. 

“Calm down. I was just going to suggest that we think about this,” Keenan said. “We have to be extra careful right now and you know that. With Bananach-”

“That’s exactly why I should go see her!” Aislinn snapped. “You think I want her out there, defenseless, when the crazy War faery shows up?!”

“She could be working with her for all we know,” Keenan snapped back, causing Aislinn’s nostrils to flare in fury.

“HOW DARE-”

“Okay, fine! But even you have to admit that it’s a bit intriguing that she would arrive back in Huntsdale right now!” Keenan shouted over the wind that was starting to pick up in the room. “And that she never told you!” Aislinn didn’t respond. “Would you calm down? I’m just trying to keep you and our Court safe!”

Aislinn opened her mouth to speak, but stopped, knowing that he was at least partially right. They did have to be careful right now. She sighed heavily and began pacing around the living room.

“How did she even meet Niall?” she wondered out loud. She then stopped and looked up. “Seth.” 

“Pardon?” Keenan asked, now frowning at the mention of her ex’s name. Aislinn shook her head. 

“Maeve and Seth… they were friends… they must have reconnected and Seth introduced her to Niall,” she said. She sighed as her worry began to grow. 

She knew that Niall was no longer harmful to humans. And that Maeve was only half human. But she couldn’t help but worry for her cousin if she truly was thinking about joining the Dark Court. While Maeve was strong, there was only so much one could handle. And Aislinn wasn’t sure if she could handle the chaos and depravity that was the Dark Court. Even if Niall wasn’t like Irial.

She needed to warn Maeve. Bring her to the Summer Court where she would be kept safe. 

“I have to talk to her,” Aislinn said again, looking over at Keenan. “If anything, to warn her about the Dark Court, Niall. Make sure that she’s safe from Bananach. Whatever you may think, there’s no way that Maeve is involved. And she probably doesn’t even know about any of it. I have to warn her.” He stared at her a moment and then sighed heavily.

“I’ll go with you-”

“No. I do this alone,” Aislinn said firmly. 

“But-”

“She’s my family, not yours. I’ll take the guards, as usual, but I need to speak with her on my own,” Aislinn said. For a moment it looked as though he was going to argue with her, but then he finally nodded.

“Fine,” he said before turning and walking out of the living room. Aislinn groaned softly and sat back down on the couch. 

He really could be frustrating sometimes.


	9. Confronting the Past

Maeve fidgeted in her chair as she tucked and then untucked her hair from behind her ears and glanced around the room. It was bright and sunny and slightly noisy as other patients met with their families. 

Every Saturday was family day, though her mother’s doctor told Maeve she could come by during the week if she made an appointment in advance. So far she hadn’t been by, saying it was so her mother had time to adjust without any distractions. But really it was more so Maeve could adjust to her new life before she allowed her mother to play a more active role than she had over the past few years.

Her mother’s doctor had still given Maeve updates, assuring her that things were progressing well. Her mother was settling in, talking in group sessions, making friends with some of the other patients. While Maeve was happy to hear her doing so well, she wasn’t holding her breath.

She had heard it all before. Every doctor had their own diagnosis for her mother and assured Maeve that she would be functional and able to live on her own in due time. And each time the meds would work for a bit. And then they stopped and Marianne Byrne was right back where she started.

“Here we are, Ms. Byrne.”

Maeve looked over, holding her breath as her mother was led over to the table where she was sitting by a nurse. 

Marianne had always been beautiful. Loved beautiful things and old Hollywood. Before she got pregnant with Maeve, she had been studying dance and theater and was destined to take the stage by storm, at least according to herself. She would regale Maeve with stories when she was a little girl about all the plays and musicals she had done in school. How agents were looking into her already even when she was just a fresh-faced freshman at university. 

It was strange to Maeve, she had had such big dreams. And then they all disappeared after that week Marianne spent with her father. She had gone from chasing down auditions to chasing down his specter. 

Regardless, Marianne never left the house without a full face of makeup and her hair perfectly styled - even during her bad spells. It was how they often fooled the social workers and others. Maeve got most of her looks from her mother - her dark, wavy hair; clear, pale skin; lithe figure. Even if she never made it as a Broadway star, Marianne did her best to look the part, often walking around as though she were already famous. She always managed to get food on the table, but whatever extra money she got her hands on, Maeve was certain Marianne spent on shoes and dresses. 

Which is why it was a shock for Maeve to see her now. She was dressed in cotton pajamas and a cotton robe, something she would never wear in the past. Her dark hair was now streaked with gray and pulled into a loose braid that fell over her shoulder and there was no makeup to be seen on her face, causing her to look closer to her actual age of 43. Maeve didn’t remember her mother having nearly so many wrinkles.

But her deep blue eyes still held a youthful glint to them. And her lips - void of her signature red lipstick - were stretched into a brilliant smile.

“Hey, Mom,” Maeve said, smiling at her as she stood. Marianne pulled her into a hug, holding her daughter tightly. She then let her go and waved off the nurse without taking her eyes off Maeve. The two sat and she reached over, enveloping Maeve’s hands with her own as she squeezed them hard.

“It’s so good to see you, my darling,” she said breathlessly. “I wish they’d let me call more often in this damn place. Hearing your voice is like a balm to my soul.”

She was definitely having a good day, Maeve thought to herself. The doctor was trying her on a new regime of medicine and it seemed to be working so far. Marianne’s eyes were clearer than Maeve had seen in awhile, her voice strong and lilting. 

“How have you been doing?” Maeve asked. Marianne sighed and looked around the room, wrinkling her nose slightly.

“It’s a bit… not to my usual taste, but it has its perks, I suppose,” she said, looking back at Maeve. “They do karaoke every Thursday night.”

“I’m sure you love that,” Maeve said, genuinely smiling this time. Marianne waved her hand in the air, chuckling softly.

“Well, you know me. If the audience demands me to keep singing then who am I to deny them?” she asked. “I’m slowly teaching the wonders of Gershwin.”

“Sure that’s interesting,” Maeve said, glancing around to the others in the room. She wasn’t so sure if they were the type that appreciated musical theater.

“Regardless, I’m good. I  _ feel _ good,” Marianne said. “I feel like this time, the doc’s got it right.” She gripped Maeve’s hands again. “And soon enough, I can get out of here and come home to take care of my darling girl.” Marianne reached out and lightly brushed Maeve’s cheek with her thumb.

Maeve looked down at her hands, not responding. She still hadn’t decided what to do, but didn’t want to ruin her mother’s good mood. Mentioning the possibility that she might be placed in an assisted living center for the mentally ill would most certainly do that. And Maeve preferred her mother happy if they were going to talk about her father.

“Yea… sure,” she said. 

“I’m serious this time, Maeve,” Marianne said vehemently. “I should have been there for you after the accident. And I wasn’t. I’ll never forgive myself for that.” Maeve looked up at her, seeing her mother’s eyes brimming with tears. “I mean it.”

“It’s okay,” she said softly. “As you can see, I’m okay. I came out on the other side.”

“But it doesn’t excuse me for being an absentee mother,” Marianne said. Maeve bit her tongue before she made a comment on that. Instead she swallowed and smiled.

“Well, suppose this’ll be a fresh start,” she said. Marianne nodded, smiling though a tear fell down her cheek.

“So, tell me, how is your new place? Are you settled? Find a good job?” Marianne asked. 

“Yea, things are… good,” Maeve replied, unsure of just how much she wanted to tell her mother. “I’m teaching advanced ballet at a top studio.”

“That’s fantastic!” Marianne nearly shouted. “Now, have you found a beau?” Maeve blushed and cleared her throat, looking away. She most certainly was  _ not _ going to mention Niall. “You’re seeing someone, aren’t you?”

“I mean… we’ve just met. It’s nothing serious,” Maeve said quickly and intentionally keeping things vague. “But… there’s… there’s actually something I wanted to ask you about.”

“Ask away, darling,” Marianne said. “We have no secrets.”

“Mom… what do you remember about my father?” Maeve asked. Marianne’s eyebrows flew up in momentary shock, but then she laughed. 

“Darling, I’ve told you all that. What more is there to know?” Marianne asked, though she began to toy around with her necklace nervously, wrapping her other arm around around her middle. 

“I’m looking for him,” Maeve said. Marianne was silent as her eyes widened and she leaned towards her daughter.

“What?” she asked softly, now tightly gripping her necklace. “Why would you do that?” 

“I need to know who I am,” Maeve said, frowning slightly. 

“Take my advice - don’t,” Marianne said sternly. The response stunned Maeve. “I’m serious. He’ll only be found when he wants to be and I’m quite sure after years of searching, if I haven’t found him then he doesn’t want to see either of us again.”

“But-”

“Please, Maeve,” her mother pleaded. “Don’t torture yourself like I did.” Maeve was silent a few moments, then looked down at her hands.

“What if I’ve found some people who can help?” she asked softly. Marianne sucked in a quick breath, causing Maeve to look up at her again.

“What court?” Marianne hissed, her face turning stormy. “And for god’s sake, tell me that you didn’t tell them. I always told you that you were to keep it secret!”.

“The Dark Court,” Maeve said softly. “The… new Dark King, actually. He’s taken me under their protection.” Marianne considered this and then nodded, her body relaxing slightly, though she continued to play with her necklace. 

“I suppose... that’s fine. It  _ was _ the court your father belonged to,” she said, crossing her legs properly at the ankle as she straightened out the wrinkles in her cotton pants. “What exactly do you want to know?”

“Maybe… start from the beginning. Maybe there are some details that you forgot to mention before,” Maeve replied.

“Well… let’s see… I was out at a bar one night with some of my girlfriends in the theater department. I hadn’t ever really been out that much before, you see, and they wanted to show me a good time. I had gone to the bar to order another martini and… there he was.” A far off look came over Marianne’s face as a fond smile appeared. 

“He was tall… so handsome. In a dark, classic way, mind you. And he knew straight away what I was drinking. Had a fresh martini waiting for me - just the way I liked it,” she continued. “My god, he was… divine. We had the most amazing week together…”

“Mom, tell me more about how he told you what he was,” Maeve said, interrupting her before she went off on a long-winded story about his biceps or knowledge of classic musicals. Or worse, talked about what had gone on during that week, which was something Maeve would rather not know the intimate details of.

“Oh… well. I think you were no more than three or four weeks old. We were in that dumpy little place, remember? Where we lived until you were five or six?” she said. “After our week together, he said I’d never see him again and I was so tired after carrying and delivering you that I hadn’t thought about all that much.” She was playing with her necklace again. “And then one day, there he was. At our door. And well, I was thrilled, of course. He had somehow heard about you and wanted to see you.”

“Do you know how he heard?” Maeve asked. Marianne just shrugged.

“I didn’t know what he was at the time, so figured we must have had a mutual friend or he saw the birth announcement,” she said. “Of course, once I found out what he was, I suppose he must have been watching us.” She paused, smiling at that thought a moment. “Anyway, I took him to see you and he was… enraptured with you, darling. I thought he would hold you for hours. And for a moment… I thought perhaps we would be a family together. Just the three of us.” A sad look came over her face. “It was foolish of me… But then he told me what he was. I was a bit shocked, to say the least. Faeries, my god. But he proved it and then put that charm on you. Said you would need to wear it always.” Maeve opened her mouth to ask how, but her mother just continued on speaking.

“He said that it was important that others like him never know what you are or that you’re his. Especially Summer faeries. They most definitely should never be trusted. He was some high-level this or that with the Dark Court and because of that, someone could come after you to get to him… It was all rather mysterious, but I trusted him. He then said that he would do his best to take care of us, but… he could never come back,” Marianne said.

“What do you mean take care of us?” Maeve asked. Marianne chuckled.

“Darling, where do you think the money came from?” she asked, her eyebrows raised as her movements became a bit more frantic. “Of course, once you turned 18, it stopped. But before then, every month on your birthday like clockwork, there would be a deposit. I wanted to use it for your university, but you wouldn’t take a penny from me-”

“Mom. You never said anything about money,” Maeve said, frowning. Her father had been giving her mother money for years to take care of her. And yet, she had to work several part-time jobs once she was old enough to cover her dance lessons and make sure their bills were paid. Only got through the dance academy by scholarships.

Where had the money gone?

Marianne blinked a few times as she furrowed her brow, jerking her necklace back and forth rather quickly. Maeve could tell she was starting to get agitated, but she needed to know about this.

“I assume it must still be there. In the account he opened,” she finally said lightly. Maeve just stared at her in shock. But then she remembered that she had power of attorney. Meaning she could access all her mother’s accounts.

And perhaps find out where the money came from and trace it back to her father. 

“Mom… why didn’t you say anything? I was working two jobs to take care of us and you… there was money just… sitting there? Or did you spend it all on clothes and makeup? Going out to bars and drinking yourself into oblivion?” Maeve nearly spat. 

“I well… I don’t know why… I thought I did,” Marianne said. “I must have…”

“You didn’t,” Maeve said. “You said nothing.” 

“Oh,” Marianne replied. She looked down at her lap, a confused look coming over her face. “I’m sure I… but… why…” She looked up at Maeve, starting to wring her hands. “If you find him… will you tell him I still love him. Maybe send him here? No, no… we can wait until I’m out. I don’t want him to see me like this.” She looked down at her pajamas. “Dear god, I look a mess.” She looked over towards the nurses. “They’ve stolen my clothes and my makeup.” 

“Mom, no one has-”

“Yes, they have! Why is it not in my room?!” Marianne shouted shrilly. “They’ve stolen it and I want it back!”In just that second, her eyes started taking on a crazed look. “I MUST have them all back!” 

“Ms. Byrne-”

“Do not touch me!” Marianne shouted, scowling at the nurse that had walked up, yanking her arm out of her reach. Maeve remained silent, suddenly feeling guilty that she had set off her mother. She hadn’t intended to. Fuck, she shouldn’t have gone on about the money. “Tell me this instant where you have put my things!”

“They’re safely in your room, Ms. Byrne,” the nurse said soothingly. 

“NO THEY ARE NOT!” her mother shrieked. Another nurse walked over and the two started trying to coax her out of her chair and from the room. Already she was starting to set off others around her. “UNHAND ME!” 

Maeve didn’t move, just sat silent as she watched them drag her mother out, still shrieking about her dresses and makeup and how she needed to look good for her lover. 

Once she was gone, Maeve dropped her head onto the table. Even though she had gotten some information out of her mother, and possibly a lead on finding her father, she knew that she had just set her mother back. For a moment there, she thought perhaps she would be okay this time. That whatever medication they gave her would work.

But part of Maeve knew that it wouldn’t. That it never would. Her mother didn’t have some illness that the doctors could diagnose and treat. 

Finally, she stood, wiping her cheeks as she grabbed her purse and walked out of the room, her cheeks blazing with the looks others were giving her. She walked out to her car and once safely inside, she allowed the tears to fall. 

Her mother was never going to get better. 

~~~

Maeve sighed as she made her way up the stairs to her apartment, feeling dejected. Her mother’s doctor had called on the drive back and asked that she not come for a while. That they had to sedate her. That it would be more beneficial if Marianne was allowed time to adjust and get better before she came again. Maeve had agreed, but she couldn’t help the lump in her throat.

For everything she had been through with her mother, she did still love her and wish that she could get better.

She stopped in front of her door and fished out her keys from her purse and then unlocked it. As soon as she walked in, she froze, her eyes wide.

Aislinn jumped up from the sofa, a hopeful smile on her face. 

“Hey,” she said softly.

“Hey,” Maeve replied, shutting the door behind her. She walked over and put her purse down on the island. “You’re here.”

“Yea… I… I’m sorry. I should have come sooner,” Aislinn said. “I was just… a bit in shock and…”

“I get it,” Maeve said, cutting her off. “Pretty sure there’s nothing that will throw you off more than finding out your cousin is half-faery.” She offered her cousin a small smile. Aislinn returned it and nodded. Maeve walked over and the two sat down on the sofa. “So… questions?”

“You’ve known your whole life?” Aislinn asked. Maeve nodded. 

“Mom told me I wasn’t to tell anyone,” she said. “Even you and Aunt Elena.” 

“So… everything with your mom…”

“Yea, because of… him…” Maeve said, frowning. “Apparently he’s something called Gancanagh.” Aislinn’s eyes widened. 

“Maeve-”

“Yes, I know. They get humans addicted and then they either die or go mad when they leave,” she said with a sigh. “Suppose mom was one of the latter.” She pulled out her charm from under her shirt. “This is why I always wear this. Apparently not only does it hide who I am, but it protects humans from me. Or at least that’s what I’ve been told.” She looked down at it as Aislinn reached out for it, studying it closely. 

“I’ve heard of charms protecting humans from faeries, but never something like this,” she murmured. “The last time I saw something like it was-” She stopped speaking as a look of pain came over her face. She then shook her head and smiled at Maeve, dropping the necklace. “So… you have any idea who your father is?”

“No. Just that he was with the Dark Court,” Maeve replied. “I actually went to see Mom today… see if she had anything she could tell me that I hadn’t heard before… today she mentioned he was someone high up in the Dark Court…” Aislinn’s eyes widened. 

“Is that why you’ve been meeting with Niall?” she asked. Maeve nodded.

“He said that he’d help me find him. And that I’ve got the protection of the Dark Court,” she replied. “Not sure why I need protection in the first place…”

“He hasn’t told you?” Aislinn asked. Maeve frowned and shook her head. 

“Told me what?” she asked. 

“We’re on the verge of war,” Aislinn said bluntly. 

“Wait, Summer and Dark?” Maeve asked, her head starting to spin. 

“No, well… there's always tension there, but no, not that. There’s a faery - Bananach - and well, things are really fucked up right now,” Aislinn said. “It’s all a bit crazy. But she’s why you need to be protected. You’re my cousin. And connected to the Dark Court. There’s a chance she could use that to her advantage. Try and… turn us against each other or something.”

Maeve just sat there with her mouth open. She really had picked the worst time to move back to Huntsdale. Why hadn’t Niall told her anything about this? Or Seth? Or anyone? Seemed like pretty big news to her. 

“I would feel better if you joined the Summer Court. Let me keep a guard detail on you at all times,” Aislinn continued.

“I’m, hold on,” Maeve said. “There’s a faery trying to start a war between the courts?”

“Well… just war in general. We’re trying to get along because honestly, it’s going to take us working together to defeat her,” Aislinn said. “But like I said, it’s really complicated and I don’t want to worry you too much-”

“Yea, you kind of fucked that up from the get-go,” Maeve said with a sigh.

“Okay, just… don’t worry too much about it. If you got my guards with you, then you should be fine,” Aislinn said quickly. Maeve just nodded. “And well… you need to be careful with Niall.” Maeve looked over at her, her brow furrowed.

“What do you mean?” she asked.

“It’s different now, and really you’re only half human, but I don’t want to chance-”

“Stop beating around the bush,” Maeve said. Aislinn froze but saw that Maeve was more frustrated than angry, so nodded.

“He almost really hurt my friend Leslie,” she said softly. “She's human. And well, Keenan was at fault there too, and it was mostly Irial-”

“Seriously, Ash. You’ve only gotten worse with the verbal vomit,” Maeve said with a slight chuckle. Aislinn took a deep breath and slowly let it out.

“The Dark Court is dangerous. And sly. It gets… violent. Some of the things they do…” she trailed off. “I’m not sure if you fully grasp just how dangerous it can be to be a part of it.” 

“And that includes Niall?” Maeve asked, thinking of all her interactions with him so far. She hadn’t ever felt truly afraid of him. But then again, she barely knew him. Had never even been to the Dark Court. A chill went down her spine. 

Maybe Aislinn was right.

“Just… be careful around him. Don’t trust him completely,” Aislinn said, reaching out and taking Maeve’s hand. Maeve nodded.

“Okay. I’ll be careful,” she said. Aislinn smiled and then pulled Maeve into a hug. With the day she had, Maeve found that she seriously needed it. “Do you have to be anywhere?”

“Not really, why?” Aislinn asked, pulling away from her. Maeve smiled.

“Up for that girls’ night?” she asked. Aislinn grinned and nodded.

“Let’s do it.”


	10. The Truth About Love

Niall stood outside Maeve’s apartment, gathering his thoughts before he knocked. She had texted him rather suddenly, asking him to come over. And it was nearly the middle of the night. He wasn’t sure what this was about, but hopefully nothing was wrong. 

He had been worried about her since the last time he was here, wondering what she was thinking or feeling. But he wasn’t going to find out standing outside her apartment staring at the door. So he took a deep breath and knocked.

A few moments later, the door opened. Music was playing and Maeve had a glass of amber liquid in her hand. 

“That was fast,” she commented dully before stepping back and letting him in. He glanced around the apartment, noting the empty bottles of wine on the coffee table. The bottle of scotch on the island.

“You haven’t been drinking alone, have you?” he asked, glancing at her. What the hell could possibly have her this upset? Maeve chuckled darkly.

“God, no. Ash was here,” she said, walking into the living room. “And well… I went to see my mother today.” Niall stopped, his eyes wide. He knew that Maeve had a complicated relationship with her mother. And from the large amount of alcohol lying around, he assumed that it hadn’t gone all that well. “I wanted to see if there was more she could tell me about my father.”

She stopped in front of the windows, looking down at the street.

“And?” he asked softly.

“Learned that he sent money. All those years, she was getting money from the bastard, and she didn’t tell me,” Maeve said. “Planning to go to the bank and see if I can get all the records. Find out where it came from.”

“That’s, I suppose that’s good news,” Niall replied. “Could help find him.” 

“Yea… of course I ended upsetting her and they had to drag her out of the room, screaming,” Maeve responded, her body stiffening. “Told me not to come back for awhile.”

Niall started across the room to her.

“God, Maeve. I’m so sor-”

She then spun around, stopping him in his tracks, her eyes suddenly sharp. 

“Tell me what happened with Leslie.” 

Niall’s eyes widened as he sucked in a quick breath. How the hell did she know about Leslie? Oh wait, Aislinn had been here. Of course, the queen had brought that up. Probably warned Maeve against getting involved with him. Which was ridiculous. Niall wouldn’t hurt Maeve. Couldn’t now that he was king. Besides, she was only half human - surely that meant even if he weren’t king, he wouldn’t be as strong with her.

Of all the things currently going on right now - both with the faery world and between he and Maeve personally - this was the absolute last thing Niall thought would come up tonight.

“What do you want to know?” he asked.

“Who is she? What did you do to her?” Maeve asked pointedly. He had to admit, if she was drunk, he couldn’t tell. She had laser sharp focus.

“She is someone that I was involved with,” he said, figuring it was best to match her directness. “When I was with the Summer Court, I was part of the guard that looked out for her after Aislinn became the queen. She had a really bad life, was hurt very badly by people who were supposed to take care of her, and while I was watching out for her, I fell for her.” Maeve didn’t speak. “I pushed things too far. Because of what I am, she started to get addicted and then, she ended up tangled up in some bad shit with the previous Dark King. Shit that honestly, no human should have possibly survived. But she did.”

“This Dark King… did you kill him or something? After what he did… Is that why you’re the king now?” she asked next. 

“No. After I was able to… break her bond with him, Leslie moved away. Said she wanted to try living a life away from the faery world. Then the king… he gave the court to me,” Niall said. “He had asked me to take it several times before, but I didn’t accept - didn’t want to. I even tried to find someone else to take it after he had given it to me, but then I realized that there was no one else I could trust with this power.” 

Maeve took in the information quietly, looking to the ground. She then looked back up, meeting his eyes.

“And this is the Dark King who didn’t tell you about what you were and let you hurt all those humans,” she stated.

“Yes,” Niall said, grimacing slightly. He took a deep breath and slowly let it out. Rather than wait for someone else to tell her, he figured it was best to get all of the skeletons out of his closet. “I was also involved with him too. During that time we were together.” Maeve’s eyes widened.

“Wait… you were with the former Dark King. And then years later, you were with this girl. But she was also with the Dark King. Who you used to be with,” she said. Niall nodded.

“In so many words,” he replied. “Our relationship was a bit… complicated.”

“You’re telling me,” she muttered, taking a drink. She paced around a bit, seeming to be silently arguing with herself about something. Niall stayed on the other side of the room, giving her space. She finally stopped and looked over at him.

“Are you still in love with them?” she asked. Niall’s eyebrows rose, not expecting that question. But before he spent too much time thinking over the answer, he found himself speaking.

“No,” he said, looking into her eyes. “Not anymore.”

He was surprised, but he knew that it was true. He still held a fondness for Leslie and Irial, but was he still in love with them? No. He realized that he wasn’t. 

~~~

The flurry of emotions that had been coursing through Maeve suddenly died down, though she wasn’t completely sure why they were so overwhelming to begin with. There had been hurt, some jealousy. Concern. After Ash had left, all she could do was think about Niall and Leslie. Wanted to know his side of the story. It was a rash move to ask him over, she knew this. But didn’t realize what she had done until after she texted him.

And now he was here. In her living room. Telling her that he was no longer in love with either Leslie or the previous Dark King, though he had had relationships with both of them. Even though one of them very well could have died from being in a relationship with him.

Maeve found herself looking towards the photographs yet again, her thoughts suddenly turning to Christopher. Would the same thing have happened to him if they stayed together?

If she hadn’t killed him in the car accident, would she have eventually killed him because of what she was?

“Would I have hurt him?” she asked softly, her blue eyes fixed on the largest photograph. She was in his arms, smiling up at him while he grinned down at her. 

She looked at Niall, tears already filling her eyes as he took a few steps towards her. 

“Would he have died because of me regardless of the accident?” she asked.

“No, I don’t think you would have hurt him,” he replied.

“But… was any of it real?” she asked, her voice cracking. Niall took a few more steps towards her.

“Yes, it was,” he said. His eyes dropped to her necklace and then back up to her eyes. “Like I said, the charm protects humans from what you are. Everything that happened with him, it was real.”

“A lot of good it did,” Maeve replied, looking at the photos again. “I still killed him.” Niall frowned. “It was all my fault.” Niall didn’t speak, and for a moment Maeve couldn’t either. She took a deep breath and slowly let it out. 

“We were at a party… and I was angry about… something. For some reason, I can’t even remember what it was we were arguing about. But it had been building up all week and I… I just kept… pushing it. Christopher begged me to just… let it go, but I couldn’t.”

She swallowed as tears began coursing down her cheeks.

“Even at the party, I just kept… needling him,” she said. “So we left and were going home. I had had a few drinks, but Christopher hadn’t. He was driving. And… I just kept pushing him. I wanted him to be angry. To shout and scream. But he was just so goddamn calm…

“And then finally… he started shouting at me and… we were yelling and… he wasn’t paying attention to the road. I didn’t even see the other car until… I tried to reach for the steering wheel, but…” Maeve went silent, closing her eyes.

She was once again there that night. Screaming. Grabbing for the wheel. Trying to yank them back into their lane. The car swerving. The sickening crunch of metal and breaking glass.

_ Chris? Chris! Wake up! WAKE UP! _

The growing heat as the flames started. Struggling to undo her seat belt. To try and get out of the car even though she was pinned inside, worried that it was about to explode. Christopher silent in the seat next to her.

_ GODDAMMIT, CHRIS! WAKE UP! _

“He wouldn’t wake up,” she said. “I yelled at him to wake up, but he wouldn’t… I was stuck in the car… Couldn’t get out. It caught on fire…” 

She opened her eyes, seeing Niall standing just in front of her. He reached out and pulled her to him, wrapping his arms around her.

“He died on impact, so I suppose there was that small mercy,” she whispered. “But it was my fault.”

“It wasn’t. It was an accident,” Niall said softly.

“But if I hadn’t pushed him-”

“Stop,” Niall said, lifting her chin up so that she was looking into his eyes. “It wasn’t your fault.”

“It is! Everything is my fault!” she shouted, pushing out of his arms and beginning to pace around the room, managing to set her glass down on the table as she ran her fingers through her hair. “I couldn’t help Mom. I killed Christopher. Everything… it’s all because of me. Because of who I am.” She stopped and looked over at him. 

“I did this. To the people I loved. What kind of monster does that make me?” she asked. “God… I was going to spend the rest of my life with him… and I, I killed him!”

“No, Maeve. You didn’t kill him,” Niall said again, walking over to her. “And you’re not a monster.” He reached behind her neck and undid the necklace, pulling it off. He watched as the charm’s protection faded away and her true form took shape. A dark shimmer enveloped her as she stared into his eyes, not speaking.

“This is who you are and it isn’t a monster,” he said. “There’s no reason to be afraid of who you are.”

“But what if I hurt someone else that I love?” she whispered. “I couldn’t live with myself. I can’t accept that this is who I am if it means that I’m going to hurt someone.”

“You won’t,” he replied.

“How can be you be so sure?” Maeve pushed.

“Because I can see it in your eyes,” he replied, reaching out to touch her cheek. “You won’t hurt anyone unless you want to.”

“But I don’t want to hurt anyone,” she said. “And isn’t that what we do?” 

Niall was silent a few moments before swallowing.

“It’s not like it’s our nature to… harm people whether we want to or not,” he said, his brow furrowed. “We can control it. You can control it. You’re strong, Maeve. So very strong.”

Maeve held her breath, knowing what he was going to do. She didn’t look away or move away, locking onto the dark shadow swirling in his eyes as he leaned closer. She parted her lips slightly in anticipation. 

When his lips touched hers it was altogether the same and yet different as the other times. The fire and intensity were there, but his lips were soft and the kiss was gentle. But there was an underlying urgency there as if he was trying to prove something to her. 

Maeve stepped closer, her hands coming to rest on his chest as his hands moved to her waist. She could feel the same power as before starting to stir within her and then suddenly roaring through her like a wildfire. 

And then she saw Christopher, smiling at her. 

_ I love you, Maeve… there’s no one else I want to spend the rest of my life with... _

She pushed him away, her eyes still close. She could feel him tense under her touch slightly. She then opened her eyes, finding him studying her in concern. Visions of Christopher still danced before her eyes though she was staring at Niall.

“I don’t know what this is,” she said softly. “But I’m… I’m not sure if I’m ready for it.” He nodded.

“I understand,” Niall replied. He left a soft kiss on her forehead. 

“And… I can’t help but wonder… is any of _this_ real?” she asked, her worry growing. She knew what he was. And that she was half human. Just as she worried that everything with Christopher had been because of what she was, she worried this would be the same.

“It is,” he said, frowning slightly. “Maeve… humans can’t become addicted to me. Not anymore.” Her eyes widened. “Since I’ve become the Dark King, my addictive nature… it’s gone.”

“Really?” she asked, her heart racing. So this _was_ real. He nodded, smiling slightly. 

“Get some rest. We can talk more later,” he said before kissing her cheek. Maeve didn’t say anything as she watched him turn and walk to the door, leaving her apartment. 

Maeve sighed heavily and shook her head. What the hell was she getting herself into?

~~~

Niall took to wandering the dark streets of Huntsdale rather than go back to the Dark Court or out elsewhere. He needed time to himself. Time to process everything that had transpired. 

He knew that what was between him and Maeve was only growing. And while he was no longer afraid of it, it would take more time for her. She had been engaged just two years ago, ready to spend her life with another. And then he had died in a tragic car accident that she still blamed herself for. 

Even though it had been years, he understood that it would take time for her to move past it. To be honest, he was surprised at how quickly he had been to move on from Leslie and Irial. Though even he had to admit that had only started from the day he met Maeve. 

How was it in such a short time he had been able to turn his focus completely to her? What was it that drew them together? Was it the fact that they were the same? Both Gancanagh? Or was it the pain in her past that drew him to her? Wanting to fix everything and make it better?

Niall sighed as he leaned against a lamp post and pulled out his cigarettes. Maybe Irial was right. That he was drawn to such things. But why? He had learned with Leslie that you couldn’t fix another person. Only they could truly fix themselves. That is if they even wanted to be fixed.

But he sensed that Maeve did. That everything she had done - moving back her, reconnecting with her old life, starting over in a way - it had been to try and regain a sense of self. And he still wanted to do whatever he could to help her. 

He had laid bare his past to her, well, most of it. And she had opened up to him. He only hoped that this meant they could both move forward.

~~~

Aislinn was watching TV in the living room when Keenan walked in. Well, half watching it. Her eyes were on the screen, but her thoughts seemed elsewhere. She seemed more at ease, her cheeks rosy as she looked at him and smiled slightly.

“You seem in a better mood,” he said, walking towards her.

“I met with Maeve today,” she said. “I think we’re going to be okay. We talked about… everything.”

“That’s good to hear,” Keenan said, sitting next to her.

“I offered her protection. Asked her to join the Summer Court,” she said. Keenan’s eyebrows rose.

“What did she say?” he asked.

“She’s okay with the guards,” Aislinn said. “Was upset that I didn’t tell her about Bananach, which is understandable. I don’t know if she’s going to join us, but I think this was a good first step.”

“That is good to hear,” Keenan said.

“I also warned her about Niall and the Dark Court,” Aislinn continued. Her smile turned into a frown. “I don’t know if she’ll take my advice…”

“You’ve done all that you can,” Keenan replied. Aislinn groaned. 

“But it’s not enough,” she replied. “I would never forgive myself if she got hurt. She’s already been through enough.”

“What more can you do?” Keenan asked. “You’ve told her the truth and given her a choice. Only she can make that choice for herself.” Aislinn studied him a moment, slightly surprised at the wise answer he was giving her. 

“And if she chooses the Dark Court?” she asked.

“Then I suppose you’ll just have to accept that,” Keenan said, his face betraying nothing but optimism. “But I think that she will make the right choice.” Aislinn nodded, her eyes turning back to the TV. 

“I just… I don’t understand why she’s getting messed up with him. With the Dark Court,” she said. “I mean, unless it’s some sort of genetic thing… she said her father was part of the Dark Court before.” Keenan’s eyes widened slightly.

“He was?” he asked. Aislinn nodded, still not looking at him.

“Yea, she doesn’t know who he was. That’s all her mom told her. Though she’s looking for him. Went to see her mom today and thinks that she has a lead. Going to check it out on Monday,” Aislinn said. “I mean, part of me kind of hopes she finds him. That it could help…” 

Keenan reached over and squeezed her shoulder, smiling at her encouragingly as she looked at him. He then stood.

“I’m sure it will all turn out fine,” he said before turning and walking out of the room. Thankfully, Aislinn didn’t follow him, just settled back on the couch. 

He kept walking until he was in his study, motioning for one of his advisers to follow him. Once the door was shut, he turned to the Rowan. 

“I want you to put together a party in the park,” he said. Rowan nodded.

“Why?” he asked. 

“Because we need to show our newest member a proper welcome to the Summer Court,” he said. The Rowan frowned. 

“I thought she hadn-”

“We’re just going to push her in the right direction,” Keenan said, cutting him off. “And… don’t mention this to the queen.” The Rowan frowned. “I want it to be a surprise.”

“Very well,” he said before turning and leaving. Keenan sighed and sat down. 

He knew that Aislinn would constantly worry about Maeve if she joined the Dark Court. And a distracted queen would do them no good. It was best to bring her into the fold.

And he knew exactly how to do that.


	11. Conflicting Feelings

Maeve fidgeted slightly as she waited for the bank worker to return from the printer. She didn’t have any problems asking to see her mother’s bank records thanks to the power of attorney, but she was nervous about what she would find.

Would his name be there? Granted, even if there was a name listed, it’s not like it would be his actual name. There was always a chance that it was just some cover that he used. Sighing, she glanced at her watch again, noting that she still had an hour and a half until her next class.

“Here we are, Ms. Byrne.”

She sat up as the man returned to his desk, a stack of papers in his hands. It was rather thick, though she supposed that she should have expected that. She had asked to go back since she was born. That was 23 years of bank records. Before, she had only asked how much was in the account so she knew how much of her mother’s current treatment she would have to pay for. 

He sat them on the desk and looked up at her.

“And if you’ll excuse me, I’ll be back with the others,” he said, already starting to move away.

“Others? There’s more?” she asked, frowning.

“Yes, from the savings account set up in your mother's name,” he replied. Maeve shook her head.

“My mother doesn’t have a saving account,” she said. He studied her a moment and then looked back at the computer screen.

“Says here that there was a savings account opened roughly 23 years ago. No withdrawals made, only deposits once a month,” he said. “Quite a substantial amount in there, actually.”

“Why wasn’t I told about this when I contacted you earlier about all her assets?” Maeve asked, starting to feel a bit angry. The man sighed and offered a sheepish smile. 

“That was our mistake,” he said. “The name on the account was misspelled and I didn’t realize it was connected until now. If you’ll excuse me…” He then quickly walked off. 

Maeve shook her head, slightly confused. Though she supposed that would explain why her mother had never used the money. Knowing her, she had forgotten how to access it and then just gave up. But then how would she had known that the deposits stopped when Maeve was 18? That was another mystery she would have to wait to find out, apparently. She was still not allowed to visit her mother.

The man then returned with another stack of papers, this one noticeably thinner. Maeve managed to get all of them into her bag and then thanked him before leaving. She made her way to a cafe near the dance studio and ordered a coffee. Once settled at a table, she pulled out the smaller stack and stared down at it. Her eyes nearly popped out of her head.

There was over a million dollars in the account.

“What the fuck,” she murmured, her eyes roving down the page, taking in the large deposits made each month on the same day - her birthday. This could have paid for all her school. All of her mother’s treatments. 

Maeve closed her eyes, shaking in anger for a moment. She then pushed it aside and opened her eyes. There was no use in getting angry and trying to place blame at the moment. But at least now she knew that she wouldn’t have to use Niall’s money for her mother. With this money, she could set her up in an assisted living facility for the rest of her life.

She looked to see where the deposits originated. It was a company name. Dark Enterprises. Maeve snorted to herself. Whoever he was, her father was certainly not original in coming up with company names. She noted the address listed there, and made a point to try and search it up on the internet when she got a chance. Maybe ask Niall if he had heard of it.

Her heart skipped a beat as she thought of Niall. She wasn’t sure if she was ready to face him just yet. Their last meeting over the weekend had left her confused and bothered. Maybe she would talk to Seth first. She then shook her head, refocusing on the task at hand as she looked back down at the company name.

It was most likely some front, but she felt like she was closer to finding out who he was. She then looked at her watch, checking the time. Sighing, she took a sip of her coffee and looked down at the records as she reached for her cell phone. 

She may not be able to see or talk to her mother, but perhaps the center would be able to go through her things.

~~~

“So, what’s this about?” Seth asked, settling on the sofa in Maeve’s apartment later that day. She handed him a mug of tea and then pointed to the stack of papers and the box on the coffee table.

She had called the center and they were able to find a box of birthday cards with her mother’s things. Every year he had sent a birthday card to her, letting her know that he had made a deposit. Marianne had hidden them away from her all these years. Maeve was looking forward to the explanation for that.

“He sent me money,” she said. “My father. It was in some sort of hidden savings account that mom must have forgotten how to access or something. She never touched it.”

Seth sat forward and picked up the top sheet, his eyes widening as he saw the amount.

“Holy shit,” he said. Maeve nodded.

“I tried looking up the company, but I couldn’t find anything,” she said. She then leaned over and picked up the top card from the box and handed it to him. Maeve had gone through all of them, each card with the same inscription.

_ Happy Birthday, my dear Maeve  
_ _ Love, Your Father _

_ Tell your mother that your provisions are in the account. _

Her mother hadn’t saved any of the envelopes, so Maeve didn’t have a name or address. Just clear handwriting. And the name Dark Enterprises.

“Do you think you could look into the company for me?” she asked. Seth looked over at her. “You know, from your side of things?” He sighed and looked back down at the paper.

“Niall would be better,” he commented. “He does know everything about all the Dark Court’s financials.” Maeve shifted on the sofa. “Why don’t you ask him?”

“Well, things are… complicated,” she said, staring down at her mug. Seth’s eyebrows rose slightly as he continued to stare at her, but she wouldn’t meet his eyes.

“Care to elaborate?” Seth asked. Maeve finally looked up at him and sighed, shaking her head.

“If I understood enough to elaborate, I would,” she confessed. “I don’t really understand just what is going on. Whenever he’s near, it’s like I’m… drawn to him. And sometimes it feels like someone - something - else takes over.”

Maeve looked towards the photographs.

“Whatever it is, I’m not sure that I’m ready for something that… intense… just yet,” she added softly. Seth followed her gaze and then looked back at her.

“For what it’s worth, he’s not a bad guy. Don’t let the whole Dark King thing scare you off,” he replied. Maeve looked over at him.

“That’s the thing… I’m not afraid of  _ him _ . I’m afraid of… _this_ ,” she said, gripping her mug. “The only serious relationship I’ve ever been in was with Christopher and, look how that ended up.” 

“I doubt that Niall can be killed in a car accident,” Seth said. “He’s a monarch. Pretty strong, if you didn’t know.” Maeve groaned.

“That’s not what I’m talking about. I mean, what if it ends just as badly?” she asked. “And yea, there is the whole Dark Court thing. I mean, do I want to get involved with that? I haven’t even been to the Dark Court. What if… what if I don’t fit in? Or I can’t… I can’t accept some of the things that they do?”

Seth was silent a few moments, thinking over his words. He then turned to Maeve.

“I get it. The Dark Court isn’t for everyone. There are some things that his kind get up to that are… well, that even I don’t really approve of. But Niall - he’s got a good heart,” Seth said. “I think it could be a good thing - you and him.”

“But what about everything that happened with Leslie?” Maeve asked. Seth’s eyes widened.

“He told you about that?” he asked. Maeve shrugged.

“Ash brought it up. Warned me about him and the Dark Court. Said it was dangerous,” she said, staring down at her mug again. She noticed Seth’s wince of pain out of the corner of her eye at the mention of her cousin.

“I get why she would. She was upset that she didn’t see what was going with all of that until it was too late,” Seth said quickly. “But this is different. You aren’t being manipulated. You’re going into this with your eyes open. And, there are a lot of things that are different with this. You have a choice.”

“Then why do I sometimes feel like I don’t have one?” she asked softly. “I mean… this pull… It’s like something wants me to be with him. And I can’t figure out if it’s me or if it’s some sort of cosmic entity or something.” Seth chuckled softly, causing her to look over at him.

“Sorry, this isn’t funny,” he said. “I know it’s confusing and at times scary, but sometimes you just have to go on a bit of faith.” Maeve stared at him a few moments. “At the very least, get to know him better. Don’t let your fear push him away.” 

“I’ll… I’ll think about it,” she replied. Seth smiled and reached over, squeezing her shoulder.

“Good. In the meantime, I suppose I can take this to Niall and see if he could look into it for you,” he said, starting to stand. Maeve jumped to her feet as well, while Seth bent over and picked up the papers. “Decide what you’re going to do with the money?”

“Suppose some of it will go towards taking care of Mom. The rest… god, I don’t know,” she said. Truth be told, she was slightly overwhelmed by the sheer amount of money. She had grown up living paycheck to paycheck. Of course, she did well for herself when she was dancing, but that was still nothing close to this. 

“Don’t spend it all in one place,” Seth quipped. Maeve couldn’t help as a small smile flinted across her face. “Maybe thinking about investing some of it. I know that’s what Niall’s done to make sure the Dark Court’s accounts aren’t depleted. What the previous Dark King did before him.” 

He stopped as he was walking to the door and looked over at Maeve. She nodded.

“Yea, I’ll think about it,” she said. 

“Take care. See you later, Maeve,” Seth said.

“See you.”

~~~

Niall was back in his private sitting room when Seth walked in, carrying a stack of papers. He paused in reading and put the book down, curious as to what Seth had brought in. He dropped them down on a table and sighed. 

“What’s this?” Niall asked, standing from his chair and walking over.

“This is a secret savings account that Maeve’s mother had. Or, well, perhaps her father opened it. The name was misspelled so her mother couldn't access it,” Seth said. “He sent money every year on her birthday. It’s never been touched. Over a million dollars in there.”

Niall looked down at the papers, his eyes widening slightly as he took in the amount. Jesus, this would have more than taken care of Maeve and her mother for the rest of their lives. It also added an extra level to the mystery of who her father was. Not many had access to funds like this.

He bent down and picked up the top page, looking over it.

“She said that she couldn’t find anything about the company it supposedly came from. Asked if we could check into it,” Seth said. 

“Dark Enterprises. That’s original,” Niall commented as he thought over who might be able to set up such a thing. It wasn’t any of the current front companies that they used. And Irial had handed over all of the financial and company records to him when he took over the court.

But perhaps there was a chance Irial knew more than what he had told Niall. Sighing, he figured it was likely the best lead he could come up with.

“So… exactly how are you feeling about Maeve?” Seth asked, pulling Niall from his thoughts about Irial. Niall looked over at him, his eyes wide.

“What do you mean?” he asked, though from the look on Seth’s face, he knew that he was playing dumb. “Did Maeve say something to you?”

“Said that she’s confused. And while she’s not afraid of you, she’s afraid of whatever is going on between you two,” he said. Niall nodded, looking back down at the papers.

“I felt as much from her. And I understand. I’m a bit nervous about it to be honest,” he said, frowning slightly. “It’s… it’s different from Irial and Leslie. And… when we’re together… I feel… something.”

“You know, some people would call that falling in love,” Seth joked. Niall sighed again.

“It’s not that, it’s… something happens when I’m with her. When I kiss her, I can feel… it’s like something is happening. Changing. I feel… stronger. More complete, I suppose,” Niall said. “I’m not exactly sure how to explain it. But I think she feels it too.” Seth’s eyebrows rose.

“Maybe this just means that you two are meant to be together,” he offered. Niall frowned as he looked over at his best friend. Now was not the time for trivial platitudes. “I’m being serious. Maybe it’s the world’s or fate’s way of pulling you guys together.”

“But why?” Niall asked.

“Because you’re good together? I don’t know. If I understood what attracts us to people I wouldn’t be standing here with you right now, would I?” Seth answered. Niall could see the pain in his eyes, knowing that he still yearned to be with Aislinn. 

But that was another whole mess of complicated that the Dark King didn’t want to dive into at the moment. 

“I think I need to speak with Irial,” Niall said, redirecting the conversation.

“Why?” Seth asked.

“First of all, he might know something about this account. Secondly, he might know something more about whatever it is with me and Maeve,” Niall said. “And… I just get a feeling that a lot of answers are with him, though I don’t know why.”

“He was Dark King for a long time before you. He might know who her father was,” Seth said. “Though, I mean, he seems to have gone out of his way to cover up whatever links connected him to her.”

“To protect her,” Niall added. “Though I’m not completely sure what from. The Dark Court? Faery in general? And from this… it’s obvious that he must have been following… watching.”

“Probably wanted to make sure she was taken care of,” Seth said.

“But why didn’t he do anything when he saw that her mother wasn’t using the money?” Niall asked. “Or step in otherwise? Surely he must have seen what was going on.”

“Perhaps he did, but in ways that weren’t obvious,” Seth countered. “I mean, we won’t know for sure until we find him and ask him ourselves.” Niall nodded, putting the paper down and then reaching into his pocket for his phone.

“Either way, I feel Irial might know more,” he said, already dialing him. “At least I hope so.”

“For what it’s worth, I think that you and Maeve… it could be a good thing,” Seth said. Niall paused before pressing call, looking over at him. “Seriously. Just… give it a shot.”

“It’s not me that’s stopping it,” Niall replied, a hint of sadness in his voice. “But she’s already been through a lot. I don’t want to push her to move faster than she’s willing to.” Seth nodded and offered him an encouraging smile.

“I get a feeling that it’s going to work out,” he said. Niall returned it and nodded.

“Let’s hope.”

~~~

Niall glanced around him as he walked through the abandoned street. He wasn’t sure why Irial wanted to meet him here, but didn’t really question it. It was best not to try and think too hard about why Irial did what he did.

He then turned a corner and stopped, seeing Irial leaning against a wall, smoking. The former Dark King looked over and smiled at Niall, pushing off from the wall.

“So what is so urgent that you had to see me right now?” Irial asked lightly as he walked over to him, taking in his shadows as they hovered around Niall.

“Maeve Byrne, the Summer Queen's cousin… what do you know about her?” Niall asked. Irial chuckled.

“Should be more specific. I know that you’re enthralled with her. She used to be a dancer,” Irial said. 

“Do you know who her father is?” Niall then asked. Irial smiled.

“I do,” he said. 

Niall felt the breath leave him as his eyes widened. He hadn’t been completely expecting that Irial would know. Perhaps have an idea, yes. Point him in the right direction to look. Sure. But it stunned him that Irial would actually know. 

Of course, then he realized how Irial might know. It was a possibility that they had all considered, of course.

“Is she your daughter?” Niall asked. Irial didn’t reply, just took a drag of his cigarette and watched as the smoke swirled up into the air as he exhaled. 

“How do you feel when you’re with her, Niall?” he asked. 

“Stop playing games and answer the question,” Niall nearly growled. Irial looked over at him, his expression contemplative. What game was he playing now?

“Do you feel different when you’re with her?” Irial asked, taking a step towards him. “Stronger, perhaps?”

“I… what?” Niall asked. Nevermind that this was the very thing that he had planned to ask Irial about. But how did he know? Irial grinned as he dropped the cigarette to the ground.

“I think… she would make the Dark Court much, much stronger,” he commented. 

“What are you talking about?” Niall shouted. 

“Yes, she would make it stronger,” Irial continued. “But you’ll need to hurry if you want to claim her.”

Niall’s mouth dropped open. Claim her? What the hell was going on?

“You see… she’s currently being courted by the Summer Court,” Irial said. “And we both know that Keenan doesn’t play fair.”

Niall stared at him a moment before the sudden urge to protect Maeve came over him. It was like a wave crashing into him and he nearly turned and ran off. But not before he got more answers.

“What’s going on, Irial?” he asked. Irial chuckled again.

“Go rescue your fair maiden and perhaps you’ll find out,” Irial replied. Niall started to take a step towards him, but stopped. The desire to go find Maeve, to make sure that she was okay overtook him.

Without another world, he turned and ran off into the night.

Irial stood and watched him go, an amused smile on his face as he reached for his pack and pulled another cigarette out.

“Go rescue your damsel in distress…”


	12. Wooing Maeve

Maeve came to a stop in front of a large, expensive looking building and looked down at the piece of paper in her hand and then back up. This was where Ash lived now? Being Summer Queen really did have its perks. She was a bit surprised when Ash messaged her rather suddenly, inviting her over. But Maeve did want to work on rebuilding her relationship with her cousin and this seemed like a good opportunity to do just that.

She slid the paper into her purse and jogged up the steps reaching out to ring the bell to be let in. But before she could press the button, the door opened and a grinning young man with copper hair appeared. Maeve’s eyes widened as she jumped slightly and then stepped back, the heat rolling off him in waves. It was as though she were standing on the beach looking out at the ocean as she gazed into his bright blue eyes.

“Maeve,” he said warmly.

“Yes… and you are?” she asked, though part of her already knew that he must be the Summer King.

“Keenan. Summer King,” he said. “And you’re Aislinn’s cousin.” He held his hand out. Maeve studied it a moment before shaking it. Thankfully, it didn’t send her into an instant panic attack. “We’re having a little shindig across the street in the park. Ash is going to meet us over there.”

He stepped out of the building and shut the door behind him, motioning for Maeve to follow him. She looked back at the door, for a moment wondering why Ash didn’t tell her there was a party. 

“It’s fine. She’ll be down in a couple minutes,” he said. Maeve looked back over at him and then moved to follow him across the street. As soon as they stepped into the park, she stopped her eyes wide. Summer fey were everywhere, laughing, dancing, drinking. Loud music was playing. Her eyes were drawn back to a group dancing around a fountain and she unconsciously took a step towards them. She had never seen dancing like that before. Part of her wanted to join them. 

But then she stopped, remembering herself. She looked at the ground and then back over at Keenan, who was smiling at her.

“Ash tells me that you were once a dancer,” he said, his tone friendly. 

“Yea, I was,” Maeve said. Though she remembered that now that Niall had healed her leg, she could once again dance as she used to. But for the time being, she wasn’t sure she wanted to join in. Best to wait for Ash. 

“Here.”

She looked back at him, finding him now holding out a goblet to her, another in his other hand. She took it and looked into it, finding it was some sort of gold liquid. She looked up at Keenan, her eyes questioning him. He only laughed.

“It’s fine. Faery wine. You’re half-fey so it’ll be okay,” he said. He clinked his against hers and took a drink, motioning for her to do the same. Maeve sighed and lifted it to her lips as she looked around the park again. She found it sweet, but remarkably good.

“Damn… this is what I’ve been missing out on?” she asked, looking back down into the goblet. Keenan only laughed and took her arm, gently guiding her forward. 

“Come on, I’ll introduce you around,” he said. Maeve glanced back towards the entrance to the park, once again wondering where Ash was. “It’s fine. I told you she’ll be here soon.” 

“Okay…”

~~~

Maeve laughed as she pulled at her scarf, finding herself all too overdressed for the weather in the park. She thought about taking it off, but stopped. She took another drink, only to realize that her goblet was empty.

“Allow me,” Keenan said, taking it from her and holding it out. Another faery with a jug appeared and poured more of the gold liquid into it. He then handed it back and Maeve immediately took a large gulp. In the back of her mind, she thought that she should take it easy, but she was having such a good time that she didn’t care. Keenan had introduced her around to some of his court and they were now talking to a Rowan named Cian. He was funny and had kept her entertained. She had the feeling that there was something she was supposed to be doing, but she couldn’t quite remember what it was. 

She wasn’t drunk, she knew that. But a delightful buzz had settled in that had her feeling lighter than she had in days. She once again adjusted her scarf. 

“You seem a bit warm. Why don’t you take your scarf off?” Cian said. She looked over at him with wide eyes.

“I… no. It’s fine,” she said. Even though she had shed her coat and purse sometime ago - she wasn’t sure where they were, but Keenan had someone take them somewhere so surely they were fine - she still wore a long sleeve shirt and her scarf. 

Her eyes once again fell on the circle of women dancing, their vines twisting and turning around their bodies. And once again, the desire to join them started to come over her. 

“Are you sure you don’t want to join them?” Keenan asked. Maeve looked over at him. “I heard that you’re quite good.” Maeve blushed slightly as she took another drink.

“Oh, I don’t know… compared to full fey, I’m not sure I’d be that good,” she said. They were spinning around impossibly fast. 

“I, for one, would love to see you dance,” Cian said, stepping closer to her. She looked over at him. Despite the bark-like skin, she had to admit that he was still attractive. 

“I…”

“Please! Come dance with us!”

Maeve looked forward, seeing that two of the vine girls were now in front of her. 

“I-”

Before she could say anything else, one pulled off her scarf and while the other took her goblet out of her hand. She felt hands at the back of her neck and she looked over in shock, seeing Keenan.

“You’re among your kind. You don’t need this,” he said as he undid her necklace and pulled it off. “I’ll keep it safe.” The vine girls now had each of her arms and were starting to pull her towards the fountain. She dug in her feet, stopping them. They looked at her with questioning eyes. She then sighed and grabbed her goblet back. 

“If I’m going to do this, I need fortification,” she said before emptying it. The girls squealed in delight as she then followed them to the fountain. Once there, she closed her eyes, listening to the music. She started swaying in time with it, allowing the bass to thump through her body. Her body then fell in tune with the beat, first starting with her shoulders and then moving down. 

Maeve had never encountered music like this. That she could feel all the way down to her bones. Her eyes flew open as her movements became bigger and she started moving around. The others backed away, allowing her more space. A smile came over her as she forgot about everything around her, allowing the music to take over her body. She could feel the sweat beginning to form and without thinking pulled her shirt off, now dancing around in her jeans and a tank top. 

Everything around her became a blur as the only thing she focused on was the music and the way it made her want to move.

~~~

Aislinn stomped across the street to the park. She had been messaging Maeve for a good hour with no response. Once she finally looked out the window and saw the party going on there, she immediately knew where she must be. She was going to let Keenan have it. Tonight was supposed to be about her and Maeve reconnecting.

Damn him and damn his meddling. If he gave her faery wine, she’d never forgive him. She didn’t know what it would do to Maeve considering she was half-faery, half-human, but she didn’t want to risk finding out. 

She stopped for a moment as soon as she entered the park, seeing that everyone was transfixed watching something. Frowning, she started walking again, wondering just what it was they were looking at. It didn’t take long for her to find out.

Aislinn’s mouth dropped open as soon as she saw Maeve. She was dancing near the fountain much like she had before the accident, doing moves and leaps that Aislinn didn’t think were possible anymore. But that wasn’t what shocked her.

What shocked her was the scarred and discolored skin that covered the right side of her body, running from her neck down across her chest and down her arm. She knew that Maeve had been burned in the accident. But she hadn’t realized just how badly until now. For what it was worth, Maeve didn’t seem the slightest bit bothered, a look of pure bliss on her face as she danced.

Aislinn tore her eyes away from her cousin, and found Keenan standing next to one of his guards, Cian. She narrowed her eyes as she stomped up to him.

“I promise you… once we get her to join our court, she’s all yours,” Keenan said. Aislinn stopped, her anger flaring up even more. She then continued on, grabbing Keenan’s shoulder and spinning him around.

“Just what do you think you’re doing,” she hissed. He looked shocked to see her, but then covered it with a smile.

“Thought it would be good for Maeve to meet the rest of the Summer Court,” he said warmly, though he winced slightly at the blast of heat that rolled off Aislinn. She looked back over at Maeve, the realization hitting her. She turned back to Keenan, her eyes now full of flames. 

“What did you give her?” she asked, her voice soft.

“Just some wine. She’s fine,” Keenan said.

“We don’t know how it’ll affect her. She’s still half human,” Aislinn retorted.

“Yes, but… wouldn’t you like for her to be full fey? To be with the Summer Court forever?” he asked. Aislinn’s eyes widened as she took a step back from him. “I don’t understand why you’re upset. I did this for you. Won’t you be happier once she’s with us?”

“Yes, but only by her choice. Not yours!” Aislinn yelled. “Christ, Keenan, have you learned nothing?!”

“I did this for you,” he repeated. Aislinn rolled her eyes. She then saw Maeve’s charm in his hand. She reached out and grabbed it back.

“You idiot. I didn’t want this! I mean, not like this!” she shouted. She looked back at Maeve.

“But… she’s happy,” Keenan said. 

“Because she’s drunk on faery wine,” Aislinn retorted. “Shit…”

~~~

Niall felt slightly uncomfortable walking into the Summer Court’s park, but pushed it aside. There were more important things to focus on. Like making sure Maeve was okay. He looked around, noticing that everyone was looking at something and whispering together. In fact, no one seemed to have noticed his arrival. He wandered around until he finally found what they were looking at.

His mouth dropped open as he saw Maeve execute a perfect leap through the air and then land and spin into another move. The Summer Girls were dancing around her, but even they were still watching her. She looked happy. But at the same time, he felt as though something was off. And he had a feeling that it had something to do with Keenan. He looked around, his eyes finally falling on the Summer King and Queen. Aislinn was glaring daggers at Keenan as she wrenched something from his hand. 

Niall walked up to the two, anger starting to course through him.

“What did you do?” he seethed, coming face to face with Keenan. Immediately, the Summer King’s look of surprise switched to anger.

“What are you doing here? You’re not part of our court anymore,” Keenan shouted, gathering attention from some of the others around them. Immediately, his guard fell in behind and around them. 

“I’m here to look out for Maeve,” he said. He looked back over at her, his eyes widening. “Shit. Did you give her wine?”

“So?” Keenan asked. Niall turned his fury back to Keenan.

“She’s half human!” he shouted.

“Yes, and so?” Keenan pushed.

“Did you even tell her what it does?” Niall shouted. Keenan narrowed his eyes.

“Does it matter?” he asked. “She’s one of ours. Would fully embrace her fey side anyway.”

“Yes, but not by force!” Niall roared, pulling his arm back to punch Keenan. Before he could, he felt someone pulling him back. He looked over, seeing Aislinn. 

“We need to get her out of here,” she said firmly. Niall knew she was right, but for a moment, he contemplated pushing Aislinn aside and releasing his full fury on the Summer King. “Please, Niall…”

He lowered his arm, but shot one more glare at Keenan before following Aislinn over to Maeve.

“I didn’t know he was doing this,” she said as they walked. Niall glanced at her and then back at Maeve.

“Let’s just get her home,” he said. 

“Maeve!” Aislinn called out. Maeve stopped mid-turn, her face lighting up as she saw Aislinn. She squealed and ran over to her, throwing her arms around her neck.

“Oh my god! Feels like I’ve been waiting forever for you to show up!” she shouted. She then let her go and started pulling Aislinn with her. “Come on! Let’s dance!”

“Maeve, you need to get home,” Aislinn said, jerking her to a halt. Maeve looked at her, her mouth falling open.

“But… I’m having so much fun. Come on. Let’s just dance a bit. Or get a drink? Yes, let’s do that,” Maeve said, looking around.

“Maeve, we’re going home,” Niall said firmly, stepping up to her. She looked over at him, her eyes wide. She then grinned.

“I didn’t know you’d be here too,” she gushed. Niall looked over at Aislinn, who just sighed and nodded. As she bent down to pick up Maeve’s discarded shirt, Niall walked over and picked up Maeve, tossing her over his shoulder. She whooped and then laughed loudly. “You know, all you gotta do is ask, if that’s what you want.” 

Niall kept from rolling his eyes as he turned and walked through the surprised Summer Court to the entrance of the park.

“Just… let’s get you home…”

~~~

Niall deposited a giggling Maeve into her bed. She rolled over and then looked up at him, still grinning.

“So you joining me?” she asked. 

“No,” he said, turning towards the stairs. “You should sleep.” 

“But I’m not tired!” Maeve whined. He huffed and stopped, turning to her. She had crawled out of bed and was now undoing her jeans, starting to pull them down. She grinned at him, then stopping, yawning loudly. 

“Get some sleep,” he said softly before turning and making his way downstairs. Aislinn was pacing around the kitchen, but once he walked towards it, she stopped.

“Look, I only invited her to the loft so we could hang out. I didn’t know Keenan had planned the party,” she started.

“Relax, I know,” Niall said. Aislinn nodded and then a stormy look came over her face as the temperature in the kitchen rose exponentially.

“I can’t believe he did that,” she fumed. “God, and he claims he thought it would make me happy.” Niall frowned.

“What would?” he asked. Aislinn met his eyes.

“He thought if he got her to drink enough, she would go full faery and join the Summer Court,” she said. “I mean, I want her to, but I want it to be her choice.” 

Niall sighed and looked towards upstairs. It was just the underhanded sort of thing he expected from Keenan. All in the name of making his queen happy. He then looked back at Aislinn, finding her studying him intently.

“What do you want with Maeve?” she asked bluntly. His eyebrows rose.

“I… I care for her,” he said. Aislinn motioned for him to continue, apparently not satisfied with that answer. He gulped then spoke again. “I think I’m falling for her.”

Aislinn’s eyes widened in shock. Hell, even Niall was shocked with his admission. Hadn’t he just told Seth hours ago that he wasn’t sure what this was?

“I mean… this is… it’s crazy. But I feel… there’s a connection with her… I’ve never felt something like this before,” he admitted.

“What about Leslie?” she asked.

“I… I still care for her. Want her to be happy. But this is… something completely different,” he said. “All I want is for Maeve to be safe and happy. I want it to be with me, but she’s her own person and can decide for herself. And I know she’s been through a lot. That it will take time for her to fully trust me. I’m willing to wait.”

Aislinn studied him for a moment and then sighed, running her hands through her hair. She then looked at him again.

“Okay,” she said softly. 

“Okay, what?” Niall asked.

“I won’t stand in your way. But know this, she is my family. I love her fiercely. You hurt her, and I will come after you. I will start a war without a moment’s hesitation,” she said seriously.

“The last thing I want to do is to hurt her,” he said. 

“I know,” Aislinn replied. She looked towards the ceiling and back at him. “Honestly, it’s all I want for her as well. Whether she chooses the Dark Court or the Summer Court, as long as she’s happy, I’ll accept it.” Niall smirked.

“Didn’t seem so keen on that idea before,” he said. Aislinn rolled her eyes.

“Yea, well, it’s not like you have the best track record with humans,” she retorted. Niall winced. “Sorry.”

“It’s true, though. But, Maeve’s different,” he said solemnly. Aislinn nodded. She then hugged herself, suddenly appearing a bit nervous.

“So… how’s Seth?” she asked softly, glancing up at him.

“He’s good,” Niall said. She looked up at him. “Misses you.” She nodded and looked away.

“I miss him too,” she admitted. She then straightened up. “I should get back… I have some things to take care of with Keenan.”

“Go. I’ll look out for Maeve,” Niall replied. Aislinn narrowed her eyes at him. “Christ, Aislinn. You can trust me with her.”.

“Okay,” she said. She then turned and left. Niall sighed and looked up at the ceiling, not hearing anything. He figured he should make sure that she was still breathing before making himself comfortable on the couch. 

He made his way back upstairs, seeing Maeve fast asleep. He walked up to the bed and leaned over, relieved to find her breathing steadily. He started to turn away when she reached out and grabbed his arm. 

“Stay here,” she breathed. He looked down at her hand on his arm and then back at her. Sighing, he straightened up and started pulling off his jacket. 

“Okay,” he said. She let go, her eyes still closed. He undressed down to his boxers and then walked to the other side of the bed, crawling in. Sensing him there, Maeve rolled over and snuggled up to him.

“Goodnight,” she whispered.

“Goodnight, Maeve.”


	13. Finding Acceptance

****Aislinn stormed into the loft, hurricane like winds following in her wake as her eyes blazed with the heat of the Sahara. She didn’t stop until the doors to Keenan’s study flew open and she stomped in. He looked up from his desk, having the audacity to appear shocked at her tempestuous entry.

“What the hell, Keenan!?” she shouted as she came to a stop, the wind still whirling around her, knocking over plants around the room and pulling papers on his desk up into the whirlwind. He stood and started towards her, his hands out.

“I told you! I only did it to make you happy!” he shouted over the wind and crack of thunder that reverberated through the room.

“It was completely unfair to Maeve! Have you learned nothing?!” Aislinn shouted. “She should be allowed to make her own choices regarding her life!”

“But don’t you want her here with us?” he asked. “Wouldn’t that make you happy?”

“Enough with this stupid, making me happy shit! What would make me happy is that Maeve’s happy!” Aislinn returned, a blast of heat shooting out of her and towards Keenan. “And if that means she chooses the Dark Court, then so be it!” 

Keenan didn’t respond, only stared at her in shock. Surely she didn’t mean it. That she would rather her cousin - her family and blood - join the Dark Court over the Summer Court. Didn’t she care about Maeve’s safety? Had Aislinn already forgotten what had happened to her friend, the human Leslie? She had been furious and upset once she had realized what was going on. That she was being used by Irial. Who’s to say the same thing didn’t happen to Maeve? Why else would Niall be so interested in her. Keenan was positive it had nothing to do with what was good for Maeve and everything to do with some sort of underhanded plan.

Perhaps he was planning to use her to cow Aislinn into submission. To hold it over them and temper the Summer Court’s power. That sounded more like Niall. He had forced Aislinn on her knees before him only to deny her information on Seth for his own sick pleasure. 

The Dark Court couldn’t be trusted. 

Not to mention, what would this do to the tentative peace and balance between the two courts? Maeve was only half-faery, but still. Any increase in the Dark Court’s numbers needed to be watched. And she would only retain her humanity for so long. It was a matter of time before the transition was complete.

“Why would you want that for her?” he asked, feeling his own anger starting to whirl. His own storm poured out of him and clashed with her own. “We both know that she won’t be safe with Niall. You know what he’s capable of.”

“Oh, don’t even go there, Keenan. We both know that you told him to get close to Leslie,” Aislinn retorted. “You’re not completely innocent. And you’re certainly not this time.” She narrowed her eyes at him. “You wanted to change her. Without telling her. Like you tried with me. And I am for damn sure going to make certain that she gets a choice.”

“But she’s not even completely human!” Keenan shouted back. “And she knows that! Has known it her whole life!”

“Exactly! She should get to decide what world she wants to be in!” Aislinn shouted, her hair whipping around her. “She’s had it hard enough, Keenan. Too many things have happened out of her control. She should at least get to decide about this!”

The two Summer monarchs glared at each other, both of them seething as the storm continued to rage in the study around them.

“You honestly think that being with Niall - joining the Dark Court - that’s what is best for her? After what happened to Leslie?” he asked, his voice low. Aislinn felt her anger roar throughout her and pour out in an arid desert wind. 

That was a low blow and he knew it.

“This is different,” she said. “Maeve knows what she’s getting into. Hell, her father was part of the Dark Court, whoever he was.”

“But-”

“And at least Niall’s willing to let her choose what to do with her life. And only wants what is best for her - whatever  _ she _ chooses,” she hissed. She then spun around and stormed out of the room. 

Keenan stared after her a few moments and then roared in anger, shoving everything left on his desk to the floor. He ran his fingers through his hair as a couple of his guards rushed in.

“What is it, my king?” the first asked.

“Nothing. It’s fine,” he said, starting to pace. He then stopped as he looked over at them. “But there’s something you can do.”

“Anything,” the second said.

“Keep a closer eye on Maeve and Niall,” he ordered. He then started out of the study, walking passed them.

“Where are you going?” the first asked. He stopped for a moment and looked back at them.

“Going to talk to someone who can… distract Niall,” he said. “She will be part of the Summer Court.” He then turned and stormed out, leaving the two guards confused.

~~~

Maeve groaned slightly as she came to. She didn’t dare open her eyes yet, knowing that if it were daylight, it would only add to the pounding in her head. However, as soon as she realized that she wasn’t alone in her bed, her eyes flew open. She looked up, seeing the outline of Niall’s jaw. She froze, taking stock of everything. She still had clothes on - her tank top and underwear - meaning they hadn’t slept together. 

That was one blessing.

But his arms were around her and she was curled up to his side. And she couldn’t remember clearly how she had gotten there. Still a bit blurry, she started going through everything she remembered from last night.

She went to the loft - was supposed to hang out with Ash. Keenan stopped her and took her to the park. There was a party. Incredible wine. Even more incredible dancing. She had gotten drunk. Started taking her clothes off and dancing around a fountain. Maeve winced, remembering how she had acted when Ash and Niall had arrived. He had to literally throw her over his shoulder to get her home.

Then she had asked him to stay with her before passing out.

Shit.

Her face heating up in embarrassment, Maeve slowly extracted herself from Niall’s arms and sat up, looking around the room. She saw a shirt laying near the bed and leaning over, grabbing it. She then started to pull it on. Maybe she could get downstairs and make some coffee before he woke up. Attempt to ward off some of what was sure to be an awkward morning after moment. 

“You don’t have to do that.”

She froze. So much for making a quick escape, she thought ruefully before slowly looking over at him. He had propped himself up slightly, though was still covered by her gray comforter, a warm expression on his face and sincerity in his dark eyes. 

One shadow was lounging on his other side, while the second was stretched out at his feet, the both of them directing their attention at her. Maeve wondered if they ever left his side. This moment would be a whole lot less awkward without the audience. But then, they were extensions of him - the Dark King. 

“You don’t have to cover up your scars,” he said softly. “Not in front of me.” She didn’t move, only continued to stare at him as she held the shirt tightly to her chest. His eyes roamed over her body, moving down her right side to her leg where he could see they continued, reaching down to her ankle. 

He then sighed and sat up, the comforter falling away from him and revealing his chest. Maeve’s eyes widened as she saw the many scars criss-crossing it and his arms and shoulders. She didn’t speak or move for a moment before she met his eyes.

“How?” she asked, her shirt discarded and forgotten on the floor as she stepped closer to the bed.

“It was a long time ago… a lifetime ago,” he said, rubbing his face and then leaning back against the headboard. Maeve sat back down on the edge of the bed, facing him. “Remember when I told you that I had spent several years with the Dark King before? We did whatever we wanted. Whoever we wanted. And then he revealed to me what I was and what I was truly doing to those poor humans…”

Maeve furrowed her brow as she watched him, Niall unable to look at her. She found herself moving closer across the bed.

“I… gave into the pleasure of it all, happy to be with someone else. I had spent a long time on my own - I was solitary,” he said. “I lost myself. And then I found out that the king… he knew all along what I was. What I was doing. And he didn’t tell me. Not until…” He closed his eyes. “He gave me a choice. The humans that had become addicted to me - had gone mad - kill them or take the torture myself and they would be spared.”

Maeve’s hand flew to her mouth as her eyes traveled down his body again. She started to reach out to touch him, but stopped. 

“How could someone do that?” she whispered. “How could someone be so cruel?” He looked up at her, his dark eyes meeting hers. 

“That’s the Dark Court. Or what his court was like. I’m not like him, but… I am capable of being cruel when necessary… My court is ruthless. You know that we need chaos, violence, lust, pain - all of it - to survive,” he said. Maeve gulped slightly. Of course she knew this, but it was something to see the ramifications of it herself. 

“You aren’t the only one carrying darkness with you.”

Maeve dropped her hands into her lap and returned to studying his scars. She then cautiously reached out and gently ran her fingertips over the ridges. He shuddered slightly at her touch. 

“I am darkness, Maeve,” he said. “My court is darkness. Are you sure this is what you want?” She looked back up, meeting his eyes. 

She knew what he was telling her. And yet, she wasn’t frightened. Not anymore. She felt as though she understood him more. And that they weren’t so different. More than that, she was beginning to think that perhaps her place  _ was _ in the Dark Court. She had long carried her own darkness inside her. Knew how cruel the world was. 

But now rather than wanting to run away from it, she found herself wanting to embrace it.

Her fingers drifted up, running up his neck to his jaw and then the scar on his cheek. He leaned into her hand, his eyes not leaving hers. 

“You took on all that pain to spare them,” she said softly. “And… I’m not afraid of the dark. Not anymore.”

She then slowly leaned forward. Niall’s eyes widened as his breath hitched slightly. Maeve pressed her lips gently, but firmly, against his, her other hand coming to rest on his chest. Niall reached up and wrapped his arms around her, pulling her down to him as he deepened the kiss. 

She could feel the warm tingling slowly spread throughout her body, starting to build. It grew much more slowly this time, lazily running through her veins and as it filled every artery and cell. And Maeve found that she wasn’t terrified of it. She sighed into the kiss, finally letting go. 

Niall’s hand found its way to the back of her head as the other slid up her back under her tank top, pulling her flush against him. After a few moments, Maeve sat up, staring down at him as she reached down and pulled off her tank top over her head and then tossed it aside. Niall slid his hands up and down her sides before she bent down and kissed him again, starting to move against him.

Niall sat up, moaning softly against her lips as his fingers ran over her back, her scars, then down, squeezing her ass. Maeve couldn’t help as she bucked against him, her own moan leaving her lips. His hands stayed there, urging her to keep moving.

She tossed her head back as his lips moved to her neck, alternating between kissing and licking her skin, his teeth barely grazing her. Maeve fell into a steady rhythm, moving against him as heat began to build in her core. She could feel him harden beneath her. 

She looked back down at him, meeting his eyes once more and she was falling deep into their dark depths, freefalling. 

“Maeve… you’re so beautiful,” he whispered and she bent down, meeting his lips again, this time in a hungry kiss.

She could feel something continue to build inside her. At first it was a jumble of heat and pleasure, but as their movement took a frenzied pace, there was something more. A pressure settled in her stomach and began to uncoil itself slowly, like a large snake. 

At first she grasped onto it, reveling in the pleasure of it. But then it grew stronger, spreading throughout her body. It was like nothing she had ever experienced before. Not with her previous hookups. Not with Christopher.

At the back of her mind, there was a fleeting thought to stop before it went too far. Before it completely took over, but Maeve didn’t want to stop. In fact, she was of the mind that she wanted to get rid of the one last boundary between her and Niall.

Just as it was starting to reach a peak, suddenly Niall pushed her off him, his eyes wide, but completely dark. At first, Maeve was confused. Had she done something wrong? Did he not want this? Just a moment ago, it seemed like he had.

But she met Niall’s eyes and saw a tinge of fear and she quickly sobered up, the high from their heated session quickly flowing away. As the feeling began to recede, Maeve was left shaking on the bed, wrapping her arms around herself.

She couldn’t help but feel as though they had just stopped something incredibly big from happening. She didn’t know what it was and that worried her. Almost as much as how easily she had been willing to give into it. This was different than the other times that she and Niall had kissed. This was far more consuming and was more than just pure lust. 

This felt like pure power had been coursing through her veins.

“What was that?” she asked breathlessly. “Is it… is it normally like that?”

Niall shook his head and then rubbed his face, leaning over. 

“No. I don’t know what that was,” he admitted. “I’ve never experienced something like that before.”

“So it wasn’t just me that felt it...” Maeve murmured. He nodded and then looked over at her, his eyes returned to their normal state.

“You… changed… your eyes,” he said, his brow furrowed. Maeve touched her cheek just under her eye, her eyebrows raised. “They had gone completely dark.”

“What… what do we do?” she asked. He sighed and looked away.

“I don’t know what that was, but… I think I know someone who can tell me,” he said, already getting out of the bed and starting for his clothes. Maeve jumped up, though she was still a bit wobbly, and started to do the same. “What are you doing?”

“I’m going with you,” Maeve said, hopping on one foot as she tried to pull her jeans back on.

“No, you’re not,” Niall said firmly. Maeve stopped and looked over at him, frowning. “I need to go speak to him alone… stay here.”

“But-”

“Trust me, on this, Maeve. You don’t want to have anything to do with him,” Niall said. There was something in his voice that stopped her from making a retort. He was being very serious. Instead she just nodded.

“Okay,” she said. 

Niall quickly dressed and walked up to her, pressing a soft kiss on her lips.

“Trust me. I’ll come back. And hopefully with answers,” he said, caressing her cheek.

“Okay.”

~~~

“And what does the Kingling want with me?” Irial asked, lazily blowing a stream of smoke into the air. He was leaning against the wall of an alley in the heart of a long-forgotten industrial section of the city.

It had intrigued him, to say the least, to get a message from Keenan, asking to meet. The Summer King had never hidden his disdain, which is why it was very curious that he had wanted to speak to him. Irial couldn’t help but wonder if this had to do with the half-fey that was currently being courted by Niall. She was related to the Summer Queen, but outside that, Irial couldn’t understand why Keenan would care so much.

He rarely cared for anything unless it was for his own gain or his court’s gain. Irial didn’t fault him in that, he was much the same in that regard. Save for a few exceptions. 

And there was no way Keenan could possibly know who she truly was.

Keenan looked around the alley, his disgust clear on his face, but then turned back to Irial, forcing himself to focus on why he came.

“I need you to do something,” Keenan said. Irial chuckled.

“I don’t make deals with the Summer Court. Unless… I get something out of it,” he said, tossing the cigarette to the ground and straightening up. “So tell me, Kingling, what’s in it for me?”

“Distract Niall,” Keenan said, though for a moment, he appeared slightly conflicted. Irial’s eyebrows rose.

“Why?” he asked. As much as he loved to play with Niall, he was intentionally staying away from the Dark Court, not wanting to mess things up for the new king. So far things seemed to be going smoothly.

“Because… I need the half-faery to choose the Summer Court and he’s getting in the way,” Keenan replied. Irial chuckled.

“Since when did you care about little halflings,” Irial asked, curious to hear the Summer King’s answer. Keenan frowned slightly, as though he was wondering just how much Irial knew about the woman and what was going on.

“She’s Ash’s cousin. It would be in her best interest if she joined the Summer Court,” he said. “It’s an even deal - we get the half-faery and you get Niall.”

“You mean… it would make  _ your queen _ happier if the halfling were with you. And a happy queen is easier to woo. Does the queen know you’re here?” Irial replied. Keenan didn’t respond, just scowled, causing Irial to chuckle again. “I’m not interested in the deal.”

“Why not? Aren’t you still in love with him?” Keenan asked. Irial shrugged, sliding his hands into his pockets.

“More so... I’m not so inclined to fuck around with fate,” he said casually.

“Fate?” Keenan asked. “What do you mean by that?”

“Yes, Irial, what do you mean by that?”

The two men turned, seeing Niall storming up to them, his shadows swarming angrily around him. He tossed a glare at Keenan, but then turned his attention back to Irial. 

“What do you mean by fate?” Niall asked again, his voice almost desperate. This was interesting. Something must have happened with Maeve, Irial thought. It was already starting. He smirked as he shrugged again.

“Like calls to like, Niall,” he said lazily. “It would seem that Maeve is your perfect match… in so many, many ways.”

Both Niall and Keenan looked rather confused at the statement. 

“Stop speaking in riddles, Irial,” Niall spat, his shadows now hovering at his sides, waiting for him to command them. “Is it to do with her being half-Gancanagh?” Irial laughed as Keenan appeared slightly shocked. Ah, the Kingling must not have figured that out yet.

“No, though I suppose it could. Or her being half-human,” Irial replied. “Though really, whether she was half or full faery, you two would still be drawn together… At least that’s my opinion on the matter…” 

“Spit it out, Irial,” Keenan shouted, heat starting to waft off him in irritation. Irial looked at him and then turned his amused gaze to Niall.

“It’s because she’s my daughter.”


	14. Daddy Dearest

Niall stared at Irial in shock. While he had had his suspicions - really there hadn’t been that many options to begin with - but he was still thrown to hear Irial admit it. Especially after he had danced around it before. 

“It’s you,” he said, watching Irial. Next to him, Keenan had turned into a statue, only staring at Irial. “You’re her father.”

“You should see the looks on your faces. Priceless,” Irial replied, still grinning. “Yes, she is mine.”

“Why didn’t you tell me before when I asked?” Niall said, starting to get irritated. 

“It was more important for you to rescue Maeve from the clutches of the Summer King,” Irial said, his gaze falling on Keenan. “Really? You were going to trick her into joining the court? Haven’t you learned by now that that never works the way you intend?”

“I was doing what I thought was right,” Keenan said, defending his actions. Irial started towards him, fury entering his face.

“She is my daughter, you imbecile, and if you hurt her-”

“But… why?” Niall asked, stopping Irial before he attempted to get into a fight with Keenan. Now that he was no longer the Dark King, he wasn’t nearly as strong as he used to be. And despite everything, Niall didn’t want him to get hurt. Irial met his gaze again. 

“Why what?” he asked in reply. “You’re going to need to be more specific if you want the answer you’re seeking.” Niall took a deep breath, about a million questions filling his mind. Where to start? 

“Why didn’t you take care of her?” Niall asked. Irial sighed, for a moment a look of regret coming over his face. 

“I tried,” he said simply.

“Yea, well you didn’t try hard enough,” Niall said firmly. Irial looked down at the ground, looking far more regretful than Niall had ever seen him. It was confusing. And unexpected. Irial never regretted anything he did, no matter who it hurt. “Do you not even know how hard it’s been for her?”

Irial looked up, meeting Niall’s eyes.

“All I ever wanted was for her to be safe,” he said. “And I thought that she would be as long as she was far away from me.”

Niall was stunned at the confession, unable to reply. Irial then shook his head and started walking away from them.

“These are all things best said in the company of my daughter so I don’t have to repeat myself,” he said, walking past them. “Come now. Think it’s time I introduced myself.”

Niall and Keenan looked at each other and then after Irial. Sighing, they both turned to follow him as Niall pulled out his phone and texted Seth. Best if he were there as well.

This was sure to be a trying morning.

~~~

Maeve rubbed her face as she sat at the island. Ash had come over shortly after Niall left and was currently making up a pot of coffee, promising to explain everything. Maeve had pulled her hair up to get it out of the way, now seeming to no longer be worried about who saw her scars.

Christ, she had started getting naked in front of the entire Summer Court. She supposed it didn’t really matter who saw them now. For the first time since the accident, Maeve was dressed in a pair of cotton shorts and a short-sleeve t-shirt - no cardigan or scarf.

Aislinn sat a mug down in front of her, moving to sit on the other stool, her eyes fixed on the scars that ran down Maeve’s right side.

“Does it hurt?” Aislinn asked cautiously. Maeve glanced at her and then down at her arm and leg.

“No,” she said. “It doesn’t hurt. Only my leg did. But then Niall healed it.” Aislinn’s eyes widened as she looked back up at Maeve’s face and then back down at her left knee, seeing the surgery scars still there. 

“That’s how you could dance last night,” she said. Maeve nodded. 

“I didn’t ask him to do it… he just… did it one night,” she said, her cheeks turning slightly pink as she remembered what had happened afterwards.

“Ah… so I take it you learned about that little side effect,” Aislinn said softly. Maeve nodded, but didn’t say anything more. “Look, about last night… I swear, I didn’t know that Keenan was going to do that. And I would have stopped him if I had known.”

“What exactly did he do?” Maeve asked, turning to face her, her brow furrowed. “I mean, I know he was trying to get me drunk, but I don’t really understand why. Or why it was such a big deal.” Aislinn swallowed and took a deep breath before meeting Maeve’s eyes.

“He thought that if he got you to join the Summer Court, it would make me happy,” she said. “The party was supposed to try and convince you to join us. And he, um, already started the process to turn you into a full faery.” Maeve’s mouth dropped open as she was rendered mute.

Turn full faery? That wasn’t even on her radar with everything else going on. Niall had mentioned it was possible before, but she hadn’t really given it much thought, being more concerned with finding her father and figuring out just what was between her and Niall.

And now this.

“I… can it be stopped?” she asked softly. Aislinn shook her head.

“No… I don’t think it can,” she said. She reached over and took Maeve’s hands as all the color drained from her face. “I’m so sorry… I didn’t know he was going to do that. I wanted you to have a choice - to decide if you wanted to be part of this world or not. To decide what court - if any - you wanted to join. And then he took part of that away from you.”

Maeve looked over at her cousin, seeing the tears fill her eyes. She still couldn’t bring herself to speak, too shocked to form any sentences. She was going to be a full faery whether she wanted to or not. She realized in that moment that it didn’t really matter what she wanted right now. 

This was happening. She was going to be full faery and all that entailed. She’d live forever. But then she’d have to eventually say good-bye to her mother. Her job. Couldn’t work at the dance studio when she never aged, could she? 

And then there was the whole overwhelming idea that she would have to choose a court. Go Dark and be with Niall, but potentially cut herself off from Aislinn. Or go to the Summer Court and potentially lose whatever was growing between her and Niall.

God, this was starting to become too much. Everything she knew was about to change. And she hadn’t gotten a say in it at all. Maeve couldn’t help as anger toward Keenan began coursing through her.

_ That bastard,  _ she couldn’t help but think, surprising herself with the viciousness behind the thought. But at the same time, how could Aislinn have ever willingly chosen to be his queen?

“I can promise you that it’s going to be okay. Whatever happens, I’m going to be with you the whole time. I’m not going anywhere,” Aislinn vowed. “Even if you don’t want to join the Summer Court, I’m still here for you.”

“Okay,” Maeve finally said. “This is… this is a lot. And… yea. I think I just need to process…”

“It’s okay. You can take all the time you need. You actually have a lot of it now,” Aislinn replied. Maeve snorted softly.

“I have all the time now,” she said, still a bit stunned. “Oh god, how am I going to tell Mom?”

“We don’t have to do that right away,” Aislinn said. “In fact, it’s probably better to wait on that…”

“That’s true,” Maeve replied with a sigh. She reached for her coffee, but just as soon as the mug touched her lips there was a knock at the door. She looked over at it and then stood, walking over.

“You expecting someone?” Aislinn asked.

“Probably Niall. He said he was going to speak to someone about something and then come back,” she said, realizing that she still hadn’t told Aislinn about what was going on with Niall. They would get to that.

She opened the door, her eyes wide as she saw Seth standing there.

“Niall told me to come over-”

He stopped speaking as he stepped into the kitchen and saw Aislinn seated at the island, looking just as shocked to see him.

“Hey Ash,” he said. She didn’t speak, just nodded. Maeve sighed and started to close the door, thinking this was about to get all sorts of awkward when there was another knock. She stared at it a moment, before pulling the door back open.

Standing there was the faery that had been following her. He just grinned as Maeve’s mouth fell open. Just behind him stood Niall and Keenan, the two shooting glares at each other. 

Of course, his grin faded as he took in her scars. There was a look of shock, then anger. But then he seemed to gain control of himself.

“You really do take after your mother now that I see you close up,” the faery said, meeting her eyes. “She always was rather beautiful. Though you are far more beautiful, I should think.” Maeve couldn’t speak or move as he stepped into the apartment, Keenan and Niall following.

“What are you doing here, Irial?” Aislinn said, scowling at him as a wave of heat rolled off her. 

“Can’t a father come visit his daughter?” Irial asked. 

The mug that had been in Maeve’s hand fell to the floor, smashing into pieces and spilling coffee everywhere. This faery. This was her father. Irial turned to her, though didn’t move any closer to her, keeping his distance. Sadness entered his eyes as he once again studied her burn scars.

“I’m so sorry that I could not be there for you in the way I should have been,” he said, his voice soft. “I should have… stepped in sooner.” 

“Who are you?” she asked softly, the only thing that she could think to say. He met her eyes again.

“I’m Irial. Your father,” he stated.

“What the hell?!” Aislinn shouted, though her scowl had turned to a look of confusion. 

“I suppose this makes us family, doesn’t it?” Irial asked, looking over at her. “In a way, at least.” Maeve just stared at him, not quite believing that she was finally meeting him. Standing face to face with her father.

Where had he been all these years? Why did he stay away from her and her mother? Why was he here now - of all times?

“Why? Why did you stay away?” she asked, settling on that question first. Irial turned back to her, his previous look of amusement now giving way to one of guilt.

“It wasn’t safe… for me to be around you,” he said. “If any of my enemies had found out about you, they would have used you to get to me. I had to make sure that didn’t happen. But I did my best. Did you not get the money I sent? I created the account for you, so that you and your mother would want for nothing. Gave you that charm to hide you from others… to bind your powers so you couldn’t hurt anyone unintentionally.”

Maeve just blinked in response, her hand going to her neck, even though she wasn’t wearing her necklace. Had left it upstairs.

“Her mother couldn’t access the account,” Niall said softly, though his face was stormy. Irial looked shocked for a moment and then back at Maeve, as if to confirm this. She nodded.

“I had to work two jobs in high school just to make sure we got our bills paid,” she said softly. “What’s more… I had to look out for her more than she looked out for me. Because of  _ you _ .” 

It was as though all the years of resentment overflowed and began pouring out of her. All the anger at him for abandoning them. For making her mother the way that she was. For not caring to look in on them, instead just throwing money at the problem, thinking that would fix everything.

It hadn’t fixed a goddamn thing.

“It was because of you that she was so messed up she could barely take care of me,” she shouted. “She spent more time obsessing over you than giving a damn about me!”

Irial frowned and shook his head.

“That… that shouldn’t have happened,” he started.

“Yea, well, if you had taken the time to check in on us, you would have known! She’s currently in a treatment facility - will probably have to be institutionalized for the rest of her life! Because of YOU!” she shouted, moving towards him. Irial just stared at her a moment. “And why now!? All this time and you suddenly decide to show up now?! WHY?!”

Silence reigned in the apartment as everyone watched the father and daughter. Maeve’s nostrils flared in anger as she glared at him, faint shadows suddenly appearing and beginning to swirl around her in anger. Niall’s eyes widened as he watched them a moment and then looked around the room, seeing that everyone else was just as surprised to see them. Irial stood still, meeting her gaze, though a few different emotions flinted across his face. 

“I couldn’t stay away any longer,” he finally said, his voice calm. “I needed to step in.”

“Still doesn’t tell me why,” Maeve retorted. Irial glanced at Niall and back at Maeve.

“It’s because I can see what’s growing between you and Niall,” he said. Harsh laughter left Maeve’s lips.

“Oh, I see. You’ve decided to step in and finally be a dad, have you? What? Are you going to warn me about him too?” she asked, crossing her arms in front of her. 

“No. Quite the opposite. I intend to encourage it,” he said. Niall’s eyebrows flew up as Maeve’s eyes widened. 

“Why?” she asked. 

“Because I know what is going on,” Irial said.

“Care to enlighten us?” Niall asked. Maeve and Irial both looked over at him and he stepped over to Maeve’s side, placing an arm protectively around her waist. A hint of a blush came over her cheeks, though she returned to glaring at Irial. “Since you seem to have all the answers now.”

“At first I thought it curious that you seemed to have moved on so quickly,” Irial said. “But then I saw who she was - that it was  _ my _ Maeve - and it suddenly started to make sense.” No one dared to speak, wanting him to get to the point. “You wonder why you both feel a pull to each other?”

“You said it was because she was your daughter,” Niall said. Maeve glanced up at him and then looked back at Irial. She was irritated by Irial’s sudden possessiveness, calling her  _ his _ Maeve. She didn’t belong to anyone. But she also didn’t want to derail him now that they were finally getting some answers. 

“It’s more than that,” Irial said, starting to smile. “That power you both feel when you’re with each other, there’s a reason for it. It’s because she’s meant to be your queen. The Dark Queen.”

Both Maeve and Niall froze - yet again. As did everyone else. Well, everyone save Keenan, that is.

“That’s impossible!” he roared. Irial casually turned to look at him. “There’s never been a Dark Queen!”

“I assure you, it’s not. It’s very much possible,” he said. He then looked at Seth. “You’ve seen it, haven’t you?”

Maeve, Niall and Aislinn all gaped at him. Though for Maeve, it was because she had no idea that Seth knew something else was going on. How could he? And why wouldn’t he say something about it? She thought they were friends. She couldn’t help as a bit of betrayal ran through her.

“I saw the possibility that they would be together. I wasn’t completely sure of the outcome,” he admitted. “What it could lead to. There are still a lot of possibilities to that end.”

“Why didn’t you say something?” Niall asked as Maeve reached up and rubbed her temples. 

“Wait a minute - you can see the future?” she asked, closing her eyes as she felt a headache coming on.

“Sort of. I can see possible futures, but I never really know which one will come to pass. I didn’t want to push it one way or another,” Seth replied. “Figured it was best for you two to figure it out on your own.”

“You encouraged this!?” Keenan shouted at Seth as he pointed at him.

“Don’t get angry with him!” Aislinn shouted, jumping to her feet and stepping in between him and Seth. “It’s not his fault! He just saw what could happen!”

“Don’t you get it!? We can’t let this happen!” Keenan shouted at her. “We can’t let the Dark Court gain more power!”

“The way I see it, you don’t have a say in the matter!” Aislinn retorted. Niall and Irial watched Maeve, concern on their faces as Keenan and Aislinn continued to shout at each other. 

“EVERYONE, SHUT UP!” Maeve finally bellowed, succeeding in getting the two monarchs to go silent. “I want everyone out! Now!”

“But-” Aislinn started.

“OUT!” Maeve shouted, directly a stern glare at her cousin. “I can’t think with all of you shouting and this… God, I need to process all of this right now. It’s bad enough that you dropped that whole bomb on me about Keenan turning me full faery.” She directed a glare in his direction, which was followed by one from Irial, though he didn’t say anything. Seth just stared in shock at him a moment, before also frowning.

Aislinn sighed and nodded, walking to the door and roughly pulling Keenan with her. It was obvious that those two were going to pick up their argument wherever it was they ended up going. Aislinn cast a sad look towards Seth, but then continued out of the apartment. 

Niall pressed a kiss to her head, then turned and left as well with Seth at his side. Irial started towards the door, but Maeve reached out, stopping him.

“No. You stay. We’ve got a lot to talk about,” she said firmly. He nodded.

“Very well.”


	15. To Have a Choice

Irial situated himself on the couch, but Maeve was too worked up to sit, choosing instead to pace in front of the fireplace, her eyes settled on him as she walked back and forth. 

Her father. 

She studied him closely, noting they had the same nose. The same chin. Similar dark hair, though she could have just as easily gotten it from her mother. But where she had dark blue eyes, his were so dark they appeared black. And they were currently fixed on her. She also noted that he was covered in tattoos, though she couldn’t really follow the designs.

“How did that happen?” he asked softly, his eyes drifting to her scars.

“Car accident two years ago,” she said quickly. “Which you would have known if you cared to look in on me. I was in the hospital for months. In agonizing pain.” He looked away from her, taking a deep breath and slowly letting out. “Then again, it’s not like you cared.” He winced, then looked back up at her.

“What is it you wish to know?” he asked.

“Start from the beginning. How did you meet my mother?” she asked.

“I was out one night at a bar. I saw your mother,” he said. “She was intriguing. And there was an innocence about her that I found enchanting.”

“So you decided to corrupt her?” Maeve interrupted.

“I only wanted to speak to her,” Irial said. “And then one thing led to another.”

“And you spent a week with her. Driving her crazy,” Maeve said. Irial frowned.

“That shouldn’t have happened,” he said.

“You said that before. But you’re Gancanagh. It’s what you do. What… we do,” Maeve said, coming to a stop. He sighed and shook his head.

“It shouldn’t have happened,” he repeated. “And I hadn’t intended on ever seeing her again. She was just…”

“A plaything,” Maeve said. He nodded.

“But then I found out that she had given birth and… I had to see if you were mine,” he said. “It’s… rare for someone like me to sire a child with a human. But… I just had a feeling. So I found her. Went to see you. And I knew instantly that you were mine. And that I needed to keep you safe.” 

“Right. You threw some money at us and gave me that charm,” Maeve said dryly. “Great parenting.” Irial slowly stood from the couch, but didn’t move towards her. 

“Maeve, I know that this is hard for you to believe, but I do love you,” he said. “From the moment I laid eyes on you, knew that you were my daughter, I… I’ve never felt a connection to something or someone like that before. It was as though everything that was once important to me didn’t matter. All that mattered was to keep you safe. And it killed me to stay away from you. But I wanted to put your safety above… everything.”

Maeve laughed harshly, shaking her head. 

“That’s rich,” she said. “I’m just supposed to believe that. That that’s why you left us alone. With my mother being the way she is. Because of you.” 

“I told you-”

“Yea, and why is it you’re so sure that it wasn’t supposed to be like that?” she shouted.

“Because I was the Dark King! She shouldn’t have gotten addicted to me!” Irial shouted back. Maeve stared at him, her eyes widening. He had been the former Dark King.

The Dark King that gave his powers to Niall. 

“None of it makes sense to me. I had never felt the compulsion to be with a human. Not like that. And the only reason I can think of is that you were meant to be born, Maeve,” he continued, not realizing that Maeve was reeling. “And that you were meant to be with Niall… that I wasn’t meant to be with him. It was meant to be you all along.”

Maeve continued to stare at him in shock, everything that Niall had ever said to her about the previous Dark King flooding into her mind.

Their relationship. How he had manipulated Niall into killing or driving all those humans mad. Had tortured him. How he had then manipulated Leslie. Hurt her. She didn’t didn’t know exactly what he had done to her, but it hadn’t been all that long ago. 

She took a step back, beginning to shake as it grew difficult to breathe. This was her father. This, this monster. And she was half him. A monster as well. She looked over at the photographs of Christopher. She would have likely killed him in some way even if the car accident hadn't happened.

“Maeve?”

She whipped her head around to look at him, finding that Irial had stepped up to her side. She didn’t speak as tears welled up in her eyes. 

She had always wanted to know who he was. So that she could understand what she was. And now she knew. And part of her wished that she could take it all back. That she didn’t know. That she could go back to living in ignorance.

Her legs gave out from under her as Irial quickly caught her, keeping her from falling to the ground. He held her as she gripped his shirt, tears streaming down her cheeks. She struggled to take in shuddery breath after shuddery breath.

This was who she was. There was no way she would be able to fight it.

“It’s true. I am a monster,” she whispered, a deep sense of guilt and pain coming over her.

“No, that’s not… you’re not a monster, Maeve. Even if you’re half me,” Irial said softly. She looked up at him as he gently caressed her cheek. “All I ever wanted was for you to be safe… happy…”

“But I don’t deserve it,” she said, shaking her head. “I don’t. I killed him.” Irial looked down at her in confusion. “The car accident. It was my fault. And because of me, he’s dead. My fiance.” Irial looked over at the photographs, something clicking in his mind. He then looked back down at her. 

“I wish I had never been born,” she said. Irial winced, his expression clearly reading that her words cut deep. “I wish that I wasn’t what I am. All I do is hurt others. All I’ll ever do is hurt others.” 

“That’s not true,” he said firmly. 

“But it is!” Maeve shouted, regaining a bit of her strength and pushing away from him. “And now that I’m… soon I’ll destroy any human that comes near me! Now that I’m becoming full faery.” She spun around to look at him. “All I meant to do is cause chaos and pain!”

“What are you talking about?” he asked.

“The damn Summer King! He gave me that stupid wine and now I can’t stop it! I’m going to be full faery and, and… I won’t be able to control it!” she shouted. Irial looked angry for a moment, but then quickly softened his expression.

“You were destined to fully embrace your faery side, Maeve. Even if he hadn’t hastened it. And… darkness is a part of who you are,” Irial said. “That will never change. But you can be stronger.” 

“Why would I want to be stronger?” Maeve spat. “So that I’ll enjoy killing people?!”

“No, so you can help lead the Dark Court,” Irial stated. “That’s what this has all been leading to.” Maeve just stared at him. “I was meant to meet your mother. To create you. Niall was meant to take my power and the court. And you were meant to rule together. Together you’ll both be stronger and so will the Dark Court.”

“This makes no sense,” Maeve said. “Fuck. You two were together! This is… this is fucked up! God, how am I supposed to be with someone who was with my fucking dad before me?!”

“It’s not,” Irial said, walking over and firmly grabbing her arms so that she was looking up at him. “Forget about our past. You feel stronger with him, don’t you? And I know now… the reason why things never worked out with me and Niall, it was because of you.  _ This _ is how it’s meant to be. But only if you accept it. All parts of you, Maeve. You don’t have to be afraid of the darkness inside you. You only have to embrace it.” 

Maeve couldn’t bring herself to speak, too overwhelmed by everything. All this talk about fate. Didn’t she get a choice in this? Maybe she didn’t want to rule over a court. Maybe she didn’t even want to be part of the faery world. She could dance again. 

Perhaps she would take the money and run. Bring her mother with her. Disappear somewhere where there were no faeries. Run far away from everything.

“Don’t run from this, Maeve,” he said, pain coming across his face. “I see that I made a mistake by leaving you… I should have never done that. I should have raised you. Taught you to accept who you are. I’m so sorry.” 

Maeve yanked herself out of his grasp, staring at him. She slowly shook her head. This was all too much. She needed to be away from him. To clear her head. To think over and process everything. And right now, Irial’s presence was proving to be too much to handle.

“Get out,” she said softly.

“Maeve-”

“Get. Out,” she said more firmly. “I need to be alone right now.” He stared at her a moment and then nodded sadly.

“You can always call me when you are ready to talk again,” he said. Maeve looked away from him.

“Fine. Just leave me alone.”

~~~

Niall tossed back his whiskey and then reached for the bottle, pouring more. He and Seth hadn’t said anything since arriving back at his place, both reeling from everything they had just discovered.

Part of Niall was still sore that Seth hadn’t mentioned that he had seen something involving him and Maeve. But looking back, he supposed he understood why his friend had encouraged him to be open to whatever could be with Maeve. And he did understand his reasoning for not being upfront about it from the beginning.

But still, he figured this would have been something that Seth would have mentioned. This was bigger than him pursuing a relationship with Maeve. This involved his court as well.

“Take it you’re still shocked,” Seth said wryly, watching as Niall drank.

“Putting it lightly,” he replied. “I mean… part of me figured that Irial was her father, but… everything about her being the Dark Queen…” He looked over at Seth. “I’ve never heard of the Dark Court having a king AND a queen. We’re not like the Summer Court.”

“True, but you mentioned that when you were with her… it felt different than when you were with others,” Seth said. “I suppose that explains it.” Niall frowned, looking down at his glass. 

Was this all destined to be? That he would be with Maeve and together they would rule the Dark Court? But if that was it, didn’t either of them get to have a say in their future? What if Maeve didn’t even want to be with him? Part of him couldn’t help but be frustrated that once again, something was forced upon him without any thought of what he wanted. Though last time, he could direct his anger to Irial.

This time, he didn’t know who to blame. And he didn’t know what to do. How this latest revelation about Maeve affected his feelings towards her. 

“Why didn’t you say anything?” Niall asked quietly.

“I told you - I didn’t want to push it one way or another. I wanted you two to figure things out yourselves without the whole future destiny thing lurking over you,” Seth said. “I thought at the very least, you two should have a say in your own lives that wasn’t burdened by that.”

Niall looked over at him, seeing the sincerity in his eyes. He nodded and took another drink.

“I don’t know what to think about all of this,” he admitted. 

“Okay, for a moment, forget about the Dark Court. Or fate or destiny. How do you feel about Maeve without all that? Without knowing who her father is?” Seth asked. Niall closed his eyes, a vision of Maeve dancing before him.

Her smile. Her eyes. Her scars. Her strength and courage. The fact that even throughout everything, she never gave up. The way she looked at him. The way he felt when he was around her. He opened his eyes and looked over at Seth.

“I’m falling in love with her,” he said simply. “And… all I want is for her to be happy. I think after everything, she deserves that much. Whether it’s with me. Or the Summer Court. Or if she chooses to walk away from all this. If she needs time to come to terms with everything. None of that matters to me as long as she’s happy. And I’ll gladly walk away from her or wait as long as she wants me to. Whatever it is  _ she _ chooses.” Seth offered him a smile.

“I think you should tell her that. Exactly that,” Seth said. Niall took a deep breath and slowly let it out. He nodded.

“I will, but not right now. I think… I think she’s probably more overwhelmed by everything than I am,” he said. “She needs time to process it. She’ll call when she’s ready to talk.”

“Probably. Shit. She’s Irial’s daughter,” Seth replied. He didn’t say anything more, but Niall could clearly read his face. He ran his fingers through his hair.

“I know. This is… so many levels of fucked up,” he said.

“You were involved with him years ago,” Seth said. “It’s been over for centuries.”

“I know,” Niall said.

“And you didn’t know about that when you met her,” Seth continued. 

“I know, but… even for us, this is… very unexpected,” Niall said. He frowned slightly as he thought it over. And he found that it still didn’t change how he felt about her. He still wanted to be with her, if that’s what she wanted. “I think it’s going to take some time for all of us to come to terms with it.”

“Got that right,” Seth said. “But even with everything… she’s still the Maeve I’ve always known.” Niall looked over at him. “Still strong. She’s a fighter. She doesn’t give up so easily.” He smiled slightly.

“That she doesn’t. And thank God for that.”

~~~

Aislinn paced around the living room of the loft, unable to sit still with everything that she had learned. 

That Maeve - her cousin - was the daughter of the previous Dark King. The man who had hurt Leslie. Who seemingly had no conscience, but yet seemed truly torn up by the fact he had abandoned his daughter. She had seen the look on his face when he saw Maeve’s scars. Had heard how her mother had been. Learned how difficult her life had been without him around.

She hoped Maeve had let him have it after they all left. That he felt nothing but guilt and shame for what he had done. But at the same time, she wondered how things would have been different if he had been more involved with her upbringing. 

Would she have been the same Maeve? 

Aislinn shook her head. There was no reason to go down that road. It wasn’t how things had happened. 

Her thoughts then turned to the bomb he had dropped on them all. That Maeve was destined to be the Dark Queen. Would she choose that? It was obvious there was something between her and Niall. But would  _ this _ change things? Would Maeve accept it or would she choose something else? Another road. 

Groaning, Aislinn ran her fingers through her hair, feeling even more frustrated. She should be with Maeve right now. Not pacing around the loft agonizing over what would happen next. 

She stopped and looked over, seeing Keenan watching her. 

“What do you want?” she asked, acid dripping from her words. She still hadn’t forgiven him for what he had done last night. Now she had his outburst to add on top of that.

“We should talk,” he said.

“No shit,” Aislinn replied, glaring at him. “What the hell were you thinking?!”

“Not about that,” he said, walking up to her. “We cannot let her be with Niall.” Aislinn took a step back from him.

“What are you talking about?” she asked. “If she wants to be with him, that should be her choice.” Keenan growled in frustration.

“Don’t you get it? Stop thinking like her cousin and think like a queen! If she joins him, it will make the Dark Court more powerful!” he shouted. “We can’t let that happen!”

“So what if it does? All that matters is that she has a choice!” Aislinn shouted in return.

“Yes, and that choice should be to join the Summer Court and stay far from Niall!” he retorted. 

“What’s wrong with you?!” Aislinn shouted back, her anger flaring up. “I don’t want to force her into anything!”

“We must do what is for the good of our court!”

“No! I have to do what’s good for Maeve!” Aislinn shouted, her anger pouring out of her like a heat wave. “Her entire life, she’s rarely gotten a say in anything that’s happened to her! And dammit, I’m going to make sure that she at least gets to have a say in this!”

Aislinn started towards the door, but Keenan reached out and grabbed her, keeping her from leaving.

“Just where do you think you’re going?” he asked.

“To be there for Maeve. Because no one else has been there for her and she needs someone. Preferably her family that actually gives a damn about her,” she retorted.

“Do you not remember her kicking us all out?” he asked.

“It’s been hours, Keenan. She needs someone there for her,” she said, yanking her arm from his grasp.

“Is this what you want? For the Dark Court to become stronger?” he asked. “Think about what this will mean! We’re on the cusp of war as it is!”

“Yea, and to be honest, we’re all going to be fighting the same enemy. I, for one, don’t think it would be so bad if we had a bit more power on our side,” she said. “Do you honestly think the Dark Court would turn their backs on us? With my cousin as the queen?” Keenan didn’t reply. “I’m going to her. Don’t even try to stop me, Keenan.” 

She then spun on her heels and marched out, leaving a frustrated Keenan in her wake.


	16. Letting Go & Moving Forward

Everything was hazy. The room was spinning around her, even when she closed her eyes.

Maeve sat on the floor in her living room, staring at the empty fireplace as she brought the bottle up to her lips, gulping down more of the liquid that burned down her throat. She sputtered slightly and weaved, turning her head to look at the coffee table.

She had started with a glass, but graduated to just drinking straight from the bottle when it took too long to pour and she kept missing the glass anyway. She snorted in laughter.

“Like mother, like daughter,” she sang to the empty apartment, looking around and taking in the dark enclosing around her. She hadn’t bothered turning on any of the lights as the sun started going down, preferring to sit in the impending darkness. “Dark like my soul,” she mused before taking another drink.

At least now all the thoughts that had been causing her head to ache and spin earlier were dulled. This was better, she decided. Better than worrying and thinking in circles. Than coming to terms with the fact that her father was some sort of sadistic faery - no, had been a fucking Dark King.

Or the fact that she was somehow  _ destined _ to be some sort of dark, evil faery queen.

She snorted again, finding the thought more amusing that it should be. Her mother would be thrilled, she was sure. Or perhaps she should tell her mother’s doctors that she believed in faeries too. Maybe they would lock her up with her mother and she could spend the rest of her days in a drug-induced haze not thinking about faeries or Dark Courts or Summer Courts. Or Niall. 

She frowned as her thoughts latched onto him and she could see his face in her mind. How gentle and kind he was. Him telling her that she wasn’t a monster. That nothing in her past was her fault. 

“That’s a big fat lie,” she stated once again to the empty apartment. She took another drink.

“Maeve?”

She slowly swung her head around, seeing two Aislinns walk into the apartment, flipping on lights. She winced and hissed in pain as the light blinded her slightly. She had been sitting in the dark for a long time, it seemed.

“Oh my god, are you okay?”

Maeve blinked her eyes open, seeing her cousin rush over to her, dropping down on the floor in front of her. A balmy, summer heat wafted off her and wrapped around Maeve like a warm blanket. She wondered why she had been afraid of Aislinn the first time she saw her as the Summer Queen.

“I’m fine,” she slurred, still weaving from side to side.

“You’re drunk,” Aislinn stated.

“Ding, ding, ding! You get a prize!” Maeve shouted with a laugh. Aislinn frowned as she looked at the mostly empty bottle in Maeve’s hand and sighed. She then grabbed it, pulling it from Maeve’s hand and then standing. “Hey… I wasn’t done with that!” 

“I think you’ve had enough,” Aislinn said, putting the bottle on the counter and starting up the coffee pot. Maeve blinked a few times, trying to focus on the bottle. If she was quick, she could probably get over there and grab it before Aislinn took it away again. She reached out, bracing herself on the coffee table and then pushing herself up, faltering slightly as she tried to remain standing.

Aislinn was at her side, helping her to sit on the couch before she toppled over. 

“Just… sit down, okay?” Aislinn said, her face full of worry. Once Maeve was settled, she handed her a bottle of water. “Drink this.” 

Maeve shot her a dirty look, but did as instructed. Aislinn went back into the kitchen and started pulling mugs from the cabinet as Maeve heard the coffee pot begin to brew. 

“I’m fine,” she stated again. Aislinn just gave her another worried look. “Seriously. So my father is some dark, bastard monster faery. And your king is some bastard who turns unsuspecting women into faeries. And I’m… I’m…” 

She stopped speaking as tears welled up in her eyes again. Fuck. This was why she had gotten drunk. So she didn’t have to  _ feel _ anything right now. She didn’t want to feel a goddamn thing. She quickly wiped her eyes, trying to stop the tears, but they just kept coming. Stupid, fucking tears that wouldn’t listen to her.

“It’s okay. Just… let it out,” Aislinn said softly. Maeve looked over, seeing her seated next to her on the couch, holding out a mug of steaming coffee. “It’s a lot for anyone to process.” 

Maeve took the mug and sipped it, blinking to try and stem the tears, but finally just giving up. 

“What do I do?” she asked forlornly as she looked back at Aislinn. “Tell me what to do.” 

Aislinn took a deep breath and slowly let it out.

“I can’t tell you what to do,” she answered. “That’s something that you have to figure out for yourself.”

“But… but you know more about all this than I do. Just tell me,” Maeve begged. “I’ll do it. No questions asked.” Aislinn shook her head.

“For better or worse, this has to be your decision, Maeve,” she said softly. “After everything else that’s been taken from you… I won’t take this away.” Maeve just blinked as she stared at her. “The best advice I can give is to… follow your heart.” Maeve laughed.

“A lot of good that does. Every time I’ve done that before, someone got hurt,” she said. “And… the last time… Chris died. Because of me.”

“That wasn’t-”

“I’m so fucking tired of everyone saying it wasn’t my fault! You weren’t there! It was my fault!” Maeve shouted. “I got him into the argument! I distracted him!” She shook her head. “Maybe Irial’s right… I need to accept who I am. That  _ this _ is who I am. A goddamn monster.”

“You’re not a monster,” Aislinn said firmly. Maeve turned, meeting her eyes and finding it was a bit easier to focus on her now. At least there weren’t two Aislinns anymore. “And you can’t convince me otherwise. You’re a survivor, Maeve. Not a monster.” 

“But I hurt people,” she said softly. 

“No. You’ve been put through some difficult things, but that’s not because of who you are,” Aislinn said. “You’re not a monster. You have a choice. You always have a choice. And the Maeve I know, would choose not to be a monster.” Maeve swallowed.

“But what if I can’t fight it? What if it’s my nature to be… evil?” she asked softly. Aislinn threw her arms around her cousin, pulling her closer and transferring as much of her warmth and sunshine to her as she could.

“You’re not evil. I don’t think you have it in you to be evil,” she replied.

“But you heard him… I’m supposed to be some Dark Queen. Isn’t that evil?” Maeve asked.

“Do you think Niall is evil?” Aislinn asked. Maeve thought a moment.

“No… but I don’t know everything about him. What if he is?” she asked. Aislinn pulled back, looking into Maeve’s eyes. 

“You have a choice. You can be the Dark Queen, or not. And if you do choose that, you can choose what kind of queen you want to be,” she said firmly.

“Did you have a choice?” Maeve asked. “To become the Summer Queen? Did you get to choose?” 

“I did,” Aislinn said. “I mean, there was a time when I felt like I didn’t, but then I realized… I could accept my role as Summer Queen on my own terms. And I did.” Maeve just stared at her. “And you can do the same. If that’s what you want.” Maeve looked down at the coffee mug in her hands. “What do you want to do?”

Maeve shrugged, laughing wearily.

“I don’t know,” she said, still not looking at Aislinn. “I mean… part of me wants to run away. Take the money, get Mom and just… go somewhere far away where I can start over. Forget about all… this. I can dance again… maybe join a new company… Leave faeries in the dust…”

“If that’s what you want, I can help,” Aislinn said. Maeve looked at her again. Aislinn offered her a small smile. “I mean, I’ll miss you like crazy, but I’ll help you get out of here and disappear if that’s what you want to do.”

“And what if I choose to be the Dark Queen?” Maeve asked. 

“I’d accept that as well. As long as it’s what you want to do,” Aislinn said. Maeve frowned, looking back down at her mug.

“I don’t know what I want,” she confessed. “I mean… even despite… everything… I still feel… I don’t want to run away from Niall. But I’m not sure that I’m ready to take on something as big as ruling a court with him. I don’t know anything about the Dark Court. Never even been there…”

Aislinn reached over and took her hand, squeezing it.

“Yea, I’m sure there’s a lot to think over,” she replied. “But I want you to know, no matter what you choose, I’m still here for you.” Maeve looked over at her. “You’re family and I won’t abandon you. Ever.” Maeve offered her a wobbly smile. 

“Sometimes I wonder why I came back. If I had just stayed in the city… I could have stayed out of all of this,” Maeve said. “Gone on living my life without faery courts and… all this bullshit.” 

“Yea, but you can’t change that now,” Aislinn said sadly. Maeve nodded. 

“I can’t,” she admitted. “And the other part of me keeps thinking that I couldn’t avoid this forever… eventually it would have caught up to me. I would have come back here… gotten mixed up in this regardless.” 

“Like I said, you’re not alone. Not anymore. You’ve got me,” Aislinn said. She took a deep breath. “And you’ve got Seth… Niall. We’re all here for you however you want us to be.” Maeve nodded. “But Maeve… I think it’s time to let go of the past.”

“Not so easy,” Maeve replied.

“I know, but… you can’t move forward, decide what you truly want until you make peace with everything that’s happened so far. And I know you’re tired of hearing it, but it doesn’t make it any less true… What’s happened - it’s not your fault,” Aislinn said firmly. Maeve took a deep breath and slowly let it out.

“All I can promise is to work on it,” she said, looking over at her cousin.

“That’s good enough for me,” Aislinn said with a smile. “Now… it’s been a long, crazy day. You could probably stand to get some sleep. Don’t make any decisions right now.” Maeve yawned.

“Yea, you’re probably right. I’m in no condition to be making any life-altering decisions right now,” she said. 

“And you’re probably going to have a nasty hangover in the morning,” Aislinn added.

“Yea,” Maeve said.

“Finish up the water, take some Tylenol and go to bed. I’ll stay until then. Or the whole night, if you want,” Aislinn said.

“I should be okay,” Maeve said. She sat up and put the coffee mug on the table, then turned and hugged Aislinn. “Thanks for everything, Ash.”

“Like I said, that’s what family is for.”

~~~

Maeve tossed and turned for what felt like hours before finally settling into an uneasy slumber. With the amount of alcohol in her system, she had hoped to pass out as soon as her head hit the pillow, but just like a peace of mind, it seemed sleep was also elusive.

Finally after waking up for what felt like the 100th time, she tossed her comforter off and got up, making her way downstairs, angry that she couldn’t even sleep. She didn’t intend to go for the bottle of whisky, instead settling on pacing around the living room until her mind or legs gave out - whatever happened first. 

Despite her lack of sleep, Maeve found her thoughts somewhat clearer. Maybe because she had managed to sober up a fair bit. But they were still churning around in her head.

Did she stay? Did she run? Did she accept her fate as this Dark Queen? Did she choose Niall? Did she choose the Summer Court with Ash? Did she choose no court? Did she forgive her father for abandoning her and her mother? Did she forgive herself for what happened to Christopher?

Maeve took a deep breath and slowly exhaled, closing her eyes. She repeated the action a few more times, trying to calm all the thoughts running around in her mind. At the very least so she could try and get some sleep. She knew that she didn’t need to make any sort of decision on anything right this minute, but she couldn’t help the sense of urgency that had fallen on her. 

That she needed to figure everything out right now. 

She opened her eyes, looking at the large windows in the living room. She walked over to them and looked down to the dark street, seeing the various faeries gathered about. She saw Niall’s guards standing at one end of the street, those from the Summer Court at the other. She half expected to see her father there, but he was nowhere in sight. 

Perhaps he had run off again. Though part of her didn’t think he would. He had said to call when she was ready to speak to him again. 

_ I do love you, Maeve… _

Mauve began to pace in front of the windows, her brow furrowed. She finally knew who her father was. He had been the Dark King when she was conceived. He had done everything he thought was right to protect her. Regretted causing her any undue pain. He hadn’t known that her mother would turn out the way she had. Seemed genuinely surprised. Perhaps her mother had always been that way and it wasn’t truly his fault.

_ You don’t have to be afraid of what you are… _

_ You’re not the only one with darkness in you… _

Maeve stopped as she thought about Niall. In such a short time, she had grown inexplicably close to him. And now, the thought of possibly running away, never seeing him again, brought a piercing pain to her heart. 

She didn’t understand it. Wondered if she should even attempt to understand it. Nothing made sense anymore, so why bother? She looked over at the photographs of Christopher. She had thought they were meant to be. That they would spend the rest of their lives together. And then he was taken away from her in an instant.

_ You need to let go of the past… _

_ You need to accept who you are… _

Maeve walked over to the photographs, reaching out to touch his face. Would he have believed her if she had told him the truth? Would he have accepted her? Maeve would never know, but she couldn’t stop from wondering. What kind of life would they have had together if he had lived? It would have been happy, she thought. But would it have been complete? Or would something in her have always felt like something was missing? 

Maeve closed her eyes, going back to that day. Waking up in the hospital in unbearable pain. Listening as the doctor told her that Christopher hadn’t survived, went through a detailed explanation of what she would face over the following months. The skin grafts. The surgeries. The physical therapy that wouldn’t guarantee that she’d be able to dance again.

The long line of visitors from the dance company that eventually trickled down and then stopped when she either refused to talk or instead lashed out, wanting someone else to feel the pain coursing through her.

Looking back up at the photograph, she realized that no amount of self-loathing was going to bring him back. And forever was too long to feel sorry for herself. 

What’s more, she knew deep down in her heart that Christopher wouldn’t want her to live like that. He had been full of so much life and light. He wouldn’t want her to feel like her life was over at 23. He’d want her to embrace her potential to the fullest. 

Maeve gasped softly as a single tear fell down her cheek.

“I have to let you go,” she whispered, looking at his face. “We weren’t meant to be… but it’s okay. It’s going to be okay.”

And for the first time since the accident, she truly felt like that statement was true.

Maeve stepped back away from the photograph and looked down at the necklace that she had put back on out of habit. She knew now that she wore it out of fear. Used it as a crutch to hide what she truly was rather than accepting it. Embracing it.

Reaching up, she undid the clasp, closing her eyes as she pulled it off and let it drop to the ground. She took a deep, cleansing breath, finally letting go of the anger, the pain. The fear.

Maeve could feel something stirring inside her. While it was at first slightly frightening, she took a few more deep breaths, keeping her heart rate steady. When she opened her eyes, she felt different. She wasn’t sure if it was real or just something in her head, but part of her knew that she had taken the first step forward.

She had held onto the past for far too long. She no longer cared to place the blame somewhere. That wouldn’t change anything. But what Maeve could control was where things went from here. And she was determined to go forward living her life on her own terms rather than blaming things on fate or her nature.

And along with that, she knew that she had to accept that she was no longer human. Had never been fully human to begin with. And no matter how fast or how far she ran, she couldn’t run from that.

This was who she was. She held the power to determine her fate. 

An excitement began to grow inside her as Maeve began to smile, feeling slightly giddy. She hadn’t felt this good in a long time. Her thoughts then turned to Niall. She wanted to tell him. Right now. 

Her eyes widened in shock. Of all people, that’s who she wanted to talk to right now. Not Aislinn. Or her so-called father. Or Seth. It was Niall.

And she knew why. 

Beyond all the cosmic destiny bullshit, she knew deep down inside that she wanted to be with him. That it was more than just a fate thing or pure lust. She  _ wanted _ to be with him. She  _ chose _ to be with him. They were a matching pair. He could understand her. Understand the darkness inside her, help her to embrace it. As she settled on the thought, it was as if everything else settled down as well. Her thoughts stopped spinning. Her worries about what came next, if she was truly ready for this, died away. 

All that was left was strong resolution.

_ This _ was right.  _ This _ was the direction she wanted to go. Run full-speed ahead in. She had never been more sure about anything in her life.

This was who she was. The Dark Queen. Niall’s partner.

She needed to tell him. Now.


	17. To Become a Queen

Niall sighed as he leaned back in his chair, looking around the bar. He had been content to stay at the Dark Court, but Seth had dragged him out, saying it would do some good to be distracted. Otherwise he might drive himself crazy sitting around waiting for Maeve to call or message.

His shadows hovered around him, sensing his agitation. He wasn’t angry, no. But he couldn’t seem to settle, feeling on edge the more time that passed. But still, he wouldn’t reach out to her, determined to let Maeve come to him when she was ready. If she ever was ready.

He took a drink of his beer, his eyes once again roaming across the bar. Seth remained silent at his side, knowing that he would speak when he wanted to talk. And for now, he preferred to sit in silence.

But then he felt something. A slight shift in the air. 

Niall sat up in his chair, feeling as though something was coming towards him, but he didn’t know what. He fixed his eyes on the crowd, waiting. And then suddenly it parted slightly. And he saw her.

His eyes widened slightly as he watched Maeve walk towards him, a brilliant smile on her face and her charm gone. He knew that he wasn’t the only one who sensed the power emanating from her as other faeries turned to watch her. It wasn’t nearly as strong as him or the other monarchs, but it was stronger than the average faery.

More than that, she was wearing a tank top, allowing everyone to see her scarred skin but yet, still held her head up high.

Like a true queen.

The closer she got, the more his agitation abated as a calm fell over him. Without thinking, he found himself on his feet, walking to meet her. 

“Maeve,” he said softly as he reached her. 

“I know that this is all confusing and in a lot of ways, it makes no sense,” she said before he could say anything else. “But, one thing I know… I want to be with you, Niall.” 

He couldn’t speak as he let that one phrase wash over him. She had chosen him. Maeve reached out, wrapping her arms around his neck and pulling him closer. 

“This… is who I am. And if being with you means that I accept taking on the Dark Court with you, then that’s what I want,” she continued. “And I know now that… I am strong enough. I want to do this - rule the Dark Court - with you.” 

He couldn’t help as he broke out into a grin, his hands finding her waist. All the worry and fear he had felt earlier completely disappeared as he stared down into her eyes. It felt like the world had finally settled around him and was no longer spinning out of control.

“All I want is to be with you,” he replied. Maeve grinned up at him as he bent down and took her lips in a kiss. 

It as if that one kiss had unlocked the heat of a thousand suns. As soon as their lips touched a fire roared to life within Niall and he was desperately clinging to Maeve, using her to somehow keep himself grounded. If he thought what he had felt before was intense, this was tenfold more so. 

“Niall,” Maeve said breathlessly, pulling away from him.

“Mmm?” he replied, trying to kiss her again, unable to control himself.

“Think we should take this somewhere more private?” 

He stopped and glanced around, his eyes wide as every human and faery in the bar was watching them. He then looked down, seeing he had one hand already up Maeve’s shirt and had pulled her flush against him.

“Right,” he said, noting her flushed cheeks. She smiled and nodded, starting to walk away, but keeping his hand firmly in hers. 

~~~

As soon as they stepped into Maeve’s apartment, she barely had time to turn around before Niall’s lips were once again on hers, his hands moving all over her body. The heat from their previous kiss had dulled to a simmer as they made their way quickly to her building but was now at a full-on boil in mere seconds as she began pulling at the buttons on his shirt, trying desperately to pull it off.

There was a soft pattering on the floor and she pulled away, finding that she had ripped the damn thing open, causing all the buttons to pop off. Maeve met his eyes, hers round in shock as he chuckled. 

“Someone’s a bit eager,” he said softly before his lips met hers again. Maeve forgot all about the buttons as her hands roamed his hard chest and they began stumbling backwards towards the stairs leading up to her bedroom. For a moment she worried about the hazards of making their way up the stairs in this state, but as if sensing it, Niall smoothly lifted her up into his arms and quickly made his way up the stairs. 

He deposited her in front of the bed, letting go of her long enough to pull her tank top off before his mouth was on hers again. 

Maeve felt as though her body was more alive than it had ever been with each kiss, each caress setting her veins aflame. She reached down, fumbling with his pants, wanting to get rid of every single clothing barrier between them as quickly as possible. 

Niall seemed to have the same idea and in a frenzy of pulling and tugging, Maeve finally found herself lying on her back completely naked and staring up at him.

Her breath caught in her throat, thinking he was the most beautiful thing she had ever seen. And he was hers. 

All rational thought then completely left her mind as he climbed on top of her and it was once against a push and pull. A battle for dominance. She flipped them over, straddling him as she left a bruising kiss on his lips. Then suddenly, he was above her, pinning her down to the bed as he attacked her neck. Maeve’s eyes rolled back into her head as wave after wave of pleasure more intense than anything she had ever felt before coursed through her body. 

She could feel it building even though he had yet to even enter her. God, if this was what it was going to be like being with Niall, she wondered how they would ever leave the bedroom.

She gave into it, closing her eyes as she felt his hands moving everywhere. His lips covering nearly every inch of her. Soft and gentle when they touched her scars, searing nearly everywhere else. 

“Oh… god,” she moaned when she felt his finger brush over her pleasure point, nearly orgasming right then and there. She opened her eyes, seeing a devilish grin on his face as he continued his ministrations, pushing her closer and closer. She reached up and pulled his face to hers, a fierce dance for control breaking out between their tongues. 

Suddenly, his hand was gone, but before she could complain, she felt him enter her in one swift, strong thrust and she cursed again, her back arching up off the bed. He started out with a steady rhythm, but as the heat began to increase, so did his pace and Maeve found herself matching him thrust for thrust, wrapping her legs tightly around him.

More than just her impending orgasm building, she could feel something else. The very same thing that she had felt all the other times. But this time, as she locked eyes with Niall, neither of them feared it. Rather, it was as though they were barreling wholeheartedly towards it. 

Maeve managed to roll him over again, this time pinning Niall down as she increased the pace, starting to pant as sweat began to drip from their bodies. Rather than fight her, Niall pulled her close, wrapping his arms around her as they began moving frantically in time with each other. 

She could feel the pressure beginning to build, becoming so intense that she had to close her eyes. 

“Maeve,” Niall panted. “Look at me.” 

She opened her eyes, seeing the dark swirling pools of his own. 

“Stay with me,” he said. She could only nod, too close to the edge to even manage speech. 

Then suddenly, it was as though the fabric of time and space had completely ripped, the both of them crying out as they came at the same time. Maeve felt the orgasm in every single fiber of her being and for a moment, she forgot where she was or who she even was as a waterfall of pleasure coursed through her. 

Finally, she collapsed on top of Niall, both breathing heavily as their hearts beat a rapid pace. Maeve felt like she couldn’t move. They laid there a few moments before Niall rolled over, settling her on her side facing him without actually pulling out of her. He gently brushed her hair out of her face, smiling softly as he gazed lovingly at her.

Maeve felt like she must be the fucking holy grail with the way he was looking at her. 

“What is it?” she breathed. Niall gently kissed her. 

“It’s… I don’t know, but… you’ve changed,” he said. Maeve chuckled. 

“Thought we discussed that already,” she said. 

“No, Maeve…” he stopped as he looked down her body and then back up. He lifted her hand until it was right in front of her face. Maeve’s eyes widened as she saw the swirling shadows around her arm. 

“What the-”

“Well… I guess we can officially say that you are the Dark Queen,” he said. Maeve met his eyes and grinned. “You’re full faery now.” 

“That’s all it took?” she asked. “Wait… that’s what I felt, wasn’t it? I just thought you were really, really good at this.” Niall chuckled and pulled her closer to him. 

“Oh, I am, but I do think part of that was… well, I suppose when we consummated our relationship, that meant you accepted your place with me in the Dark Court,” he replied. Maeve rolled her eyes.

“Go figure. Sex would be how I become the Dark Queen,” she quipped. “Fitting.” 

Niall was silent a few moments, just watching her.

“What, Niall? I can’t read your mind,” Maeve said.

“Are you happy?” he asked, a bit of worry creeping into his eyes. Maeve laughed loudly and then planted a quick kiss on his lips. 

“Yes, you idiot,” she said. “I told you - I want to be with you. To be the Dark Queen. You’re stuck with me now.” Niall grinned in response.

“I couldn’t imagine being stuck with anyone else,” he replied before kissing her softly. 

“So… what comes next?” Maeve asked.

“Other than you? Hopefully several times tonight?” Niall asked, grinning. Maeve rolled her eyes. “Anything. Though… now that you’re officially queen, we will need to go to the Dark Court. You need to be filled in on everything that’s going on.”

“Right, this war business,” Maeve commented. She expected to be afraid, but for some reason, there was no fear. 

“Don’t worry. We’ll beat this,” Niall vowed. Maeve smiled and nodded.

“I know,” she said. “We’re stronger together.”

“That we are.”

~~~

Aislinn stopped on the sidewalk, looking up at the night sky. She had been walking around for hours, unable to bring herself to go back to the loft just yet. But she had felt something in that moment. A shift in the atmosphere. 

She was certain that it meant Maeve had made her choice.

A soft smile came over her face. While she wasn’t sure what this would mean for balance between the courts, she was truly happy for her cousin. She had been through enough in her young life and deserved happiness.

If that meant being with Niall, accepting the mantle of Dark Queen, then she would be happy for her and accept whatever consequences would follow. Despite the uncertainty, Aislinn couldn’t help but think this would be a good thing. That her bond with Maeve was strong enough that it might bring about a final peace between the Summer and Dark courts.

“Ash?”

She looked down from the sky, finding Seth standing a few feet away from her, seemingly surprised to see her out on her own without her ever present guard. Awkwardness settled over the two as they stared at each other, neither moving towards the other.

“Hey,” she finally said softly, smiling at him. Seth relaxed slightly, returning the smile. “I, ah, needed some air. Thought I’d take a walk.”

“Mind if I join you?” he asked. She shook her head as he walked over and they began a slow, steady pace walking through the empty streets of Huntsdale. “So… you feel that? Kind of weird. Like… something shifted.”

“Yea, I think… I think it means Maeve’s found her place,” she said. 

“Thought as much,” Seth replied. “She showed up at the Crow’s Nest. After a fairly heated makeout session, she and Niall went off somewhere.” Aislinn nodded slowly, her cheeks blushing slightly. 

So that’s how it worked with the Dark Court. Though she figured it shouldn’t be that surprising. 

“I’m happy for them,” she said. “I think they’ll be good for each other. Maeve’ll help balance out some of Niall’s darker tendencies and Niall will...” 

“Remind her how strong she is,” Seth finished for her. Aislinn stopped walking and looked up at him.

“Yea,” she replied softly. She held her breath as they stared at each other, unsure of what would come next. She knew that she still loved him, but after everything, she wasn’t sure what to say. 

“Ash…” he said softly. “I’m sorry… about everything.” She nodded.

“I know,” she replied. “I still love you, you know.”

“I still love you, too,” he said. 

In that moment, it was as though everything aligned and Aislinn knew that things were right between them. Seth bent down and she met him halfway in a soft kiss. 

God, she missed this. This closeness with him. And now that she knew she wouldn’t hurt him, she didn’t hold back, wrapping her arms around his neck and pulling him closer.

“Are we going to be okay?” she asked softly, leaning her forehead against his afterwards. He nodded.

“Yea, we’re going to be okay…”

~~~

Keenan jolted up from his chair, knocking over the goblet of wine that had been sitting on his desk. He looked up at the ceiling, frowning as he quickly went through over all the possibilities of what could have just happened.

Was it Bananach? Had the war begun?

His thoughts then turned to Maeve and Niall. His eyes widened as he sat back down, the realization of what had just happened washing over him.

She had chosen the Dark Court.

“Tavish! Cian!” he shouted. His two advisors quickly made their way into the study.

“Yes?” they asked. 

“Where’s the queen?” he asked.

“Still out. She hasn’t returned,” Tavish said. “She sent the guards back.” Keenan frowned. It wasn’t safe for her to be out unguarded. Especially not now. Part of him didn’t think that Maeve would hurt her, but he wasn’t sure just what would happen now that she was the Dark Queen. 

“Is something wrong?” Cian asked. Keenan sighed and rubbed his face.

“I’m not sure,” he replied, looking up at them. “The Dark Court has just gained more power.”

“How so?” Tavish asked, confused. 

“It’s now gained a Dark Queen,” Keenan said. The two advisors looked at each other in shock and then back at Keenan. 

“But… how-”

“Maeve - Aislinn’s cousin - seems to have accepted her destined role,” Keenan said tiredly. 

“What would you have us do?” Tavish asked. Keenan sighed.

“I don’t know,” he said. “They haven’t done anything to threaten us yet. I suppose we just… wait.” 

“Wait?” Cian asked. Keenan nodded. 

“That’s all for now,” he said, dismissing them. The two walked out of the study, leaving him alone with his thoughts. Keenan leaned back in his chair, his thoughts whirling. He had worried about this very thing, but had no idea what to do. He knew that Aislinn would probably be happy. Tell him to continue the relative peace between the courts. Say that this could be a good thing.

He couldn’t help but wish that he could go to Donia. Talk to her. Ask her advice. Or just… be with her. It was obvious that he would get nowhere with Aislinn. Even if she and Seth were no longer together, she still loved him. Probably always would. He, Summer King, would never possess her heart in the way that Seth did.

And to make matters worse, now even Niall had someone. A queen. A powerful one if that shift was anything to go by. 

The Dark Court had just gotten stronger, and Keenan was left feeling alone and utterly lost. 

~~~

Irial leaned against the building, blending into the dark shadows that surrounded him. He blew out a stream of smoke, his dark eyes fix on the small group of people making their way down the sidewalk across the street from him. 

He wasn’t sure if she would sense him or not. He knew she still had the Sight, but he didn’t want her to know that he was there. That he stopped by often to check on her.

Leslie laughed loudly, tossing her head back as she leaned on one of her companions. She looked good. Happy. Healthy. Maybe it was a good thing that she had left the faery world behind. It still didn’t stop the ache in his heart. 

But perhaps things could change. Could be different. He had felt it. The moment Maeve had accepted her destiny as the Dark Queen. There was no love lost. He was happy that his daughter had now become part of this world, knew that she could make Niall happy in a way that he couldn’t. That even Leslie couldn’t. He hoped that Maeve would come around to forgiving him, maybe open to a relationship with him.

And more than anything, he hoped that if he could repair his relationship with her that meant someday he could repair his relationship with Leslie.

He watched as she called out good-bye and made her way up the stairs to the building. She paused for a moment, looking around as though she sensed him there. But then she turned back to the door and went inside.

Irial sighed, putting out his cigarette.

“Soon,” he whispered into the night as he turned and started walking away. Just exactly what that meant, he wasn’t sure. But couldn’t help as a smile came over his face. 

There was always hope.

**Author's Note:**

> So, I started writing this a long time ago and then abandoned it, thinking it wasn't the best story line. Then I started another Wicked Lovely story. But this one wouldn't leave my head and next thing I knew, I had finished it. And ended up liking it better than the other story. Figured what the hell, let's post it. Definitely goes off canon. But give it a chance. ^_^


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